Begin Again Season 2
by JudyRae1982
Summary: Rufus and Lily are finally back together. Will they finally get the happy life together they so desperately long for?
1. Misconception

_**Begin Again**_

_**Season Two Episode 1: Misconception**_

Rufus stood looking over the diamonds in the jewelry store. Did he really want to get married for the third time? He was weary after the whole Lisa fiasco, but then again, that had only not lasted because he wasn't in love with her. Not in the way he loved Lily.

"May I help you with something? the jeweler asked, a smile on his face. The jeweler was an older gentleman, but he looked to be no later than his early sixties. His hair was grey, but he wasn't very wrinkled. He was dressed well, and didn't look like he was hard up for money. He looked nice and polished just like the diamonds in the case in front of him. His name tag red Geoffrey. He looked like he knew what he was doing.

"I'm just looking," Rufus said. He loved Lily. He truly did. He just hated the thought of being one of those men who was on his sixth wife. Though, he would only be on his _third_ wife, which was really the same as his second wife. He loved Lily so much. It was just that... They had been through _so_ much together, and a lot of it was bad. Could their marriage last even though their last one had not only been rocky, but ended when Lily chose to stay married her fourth husband? Not only that, but once Bart had died, she had remarried her third husband or whatever the heck number William had been once. She had chosen William instead of going back to Rufus.

This all made Rufus stop and think about another pressing matter. Did Lily even _want_ to remarry him after divorcing William? He thought _he'd_ be bad with a third wife, but if he and Lily were to marry again, he would now be Lily's seventh husband. Did he even want to _be_ a seventh husband? Actually, he'd be the fifth _and_ seventh husband.

"Is there a special lady in your life you're thinking about popping the question to?" Geoffrey asked, the smile on his face getting a bit wider, and his eyes twinkling right before he winked at Rufus.

Rufus blushed and smiled, and looked back down to the diamond case. "There might be."

"What's her name? Or is it a he?" Geoffrey asked.

"Her name is Lily, and she's my world," Rufus said, smiling even bigger now. His heart pounded a little harder upon saying her name.

"Well, then why the hesitation? Is this your first time popping the question?" Geoffrey asked. "It's normal to be a little nervous the first time. After all, getting married is a huge decision."

Rufus looked at him, and blushed slightly. "Actually, this would be my fourth proposal. I was married to another woman years ago, then we divorced. After her, I married my Lily. Things didn't work out between us, and I eventually proposed to my girlfriend Lisa. We almost married, but I fell in love with Lily again, and she fell in love with me. I broke off the engagement to be with Lily." Rufus didn't know why he was telling a stranger such things. He guessed that Geoffrey just seemed like such a nice, understanding man. It felt good to talk to someone non bias about the situation.

"Well, you know what they say about true love. If you love someone, let them go. If they come back, then you know they're yours forever. You let Lily go, and she came back to you. I'd say she's a keeper." Geoffrey winked and smiled at him.

Rufus smiled, though, his smile wasn't quite as big this time. He sighed. "I don't know. We went through so many problems when we were married, and before we got married we went through problems then too. So far, things are going wonderfully for us this time around. However, I'm worried that marriage will ruin it. You know how some people are better at just being life partners without the legality or pressure of marriage? What if Lily and I are like that? Sometimes it seems that on again off again couples don't work out. I've even heard of couples marrying twice and divorcing twice. I just don't know what to do!" Rufus exclaimed. He hadn't realized that he was so torn up about this decision.

"It sounds to me like you need more time to think about it. There is no rush. If it's meant to be, Lily will still be there a month from now, or whenever you're ready to propose. If she's not, then your decision will be made for you," Geoffrey said wisely. "Until then, why don't you look at rings you think you'd like for her? That way, if and when you do decide to propose to her, you'll already know which one to get!"

Rufus smiled, a little brighter now. "All right. I think you're right. I'll wait a bit. For now though, let me see that pretty circular one with the raised setting." He pointed to the one he wanted.

Geoffrey grinned, and unlocked the case. He then took it out and handed it to Rufus to look at in the light. "Ah, that's an excellent choice! It is fourteen karat white gold with a point 85 carat diamond."

Rufus held the diamond into the light. "It _is_ quite beautiful," he agreed with a smile. He might not have been quite ready to make a decision just yet, but looking at the rings wasn't hindering him from wanting to marry Lily, so at least that was a good sign, he figured. Anyway, it never hurt to at least look!

~Begin Again~

Lily sat at her desk at home, searching through her documents. She worked at Bass Enterprises, helping run it. She did a little bit of everything. Right now, she was currently going over their monthly expenses. It wasn't exactly the most interesting or fun job in the world, but it paid the bills. Also, she loved being able to work so closely with her son. Sometimes, it seemed work was the only time she got to see him. Well, other than when he'd drop Henry off to babysit. Even then, she'd only see Chuck for a good ten minutes total when babysitting Henry.

Just then, the phone rang. She quickly dropped her papers, then took off her reading glasses and set them on the desk. She would welcome any break after working on boring numbers for the past hour.

She picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"Lily! How's it goin'?" came a familiar, strong Brooklyn accent.

Lily grinned. "Jimmy! How are you? Gosh, it's been so long since we've last talked. I thought you forgot about me."

"Me? Forget about you? No way! I've just been busy with work. It's summer now. There's so many animals out there needing rides to places. Everyones too lazy to walk nowadays. Though, I guess that's good for me, huh?" Jimmy asked in his comical way.

Lily laughed. "Yes, it is!" She loved Jimmy. He may not have been someone she would typically be friends with, but ever since getting back together with Rufus, she felt herself becoming a little less uptight, and more open to new things and new friendships. She loved Rufus so much, she guessed he was starting to rub off on her a little. "So, to what do I owe the pleasure of you finally calling me?"

"Hey, you could have called me too, you know," Jimmy reminded her playfully.

"I know, I know," Lily said with a tired sigh. "I'm sorry. I guess I've been busy too with work, and getting back together with Rufus. So, how have you been?" She yawned. Rufus hadn't allowed her much sleep the night before. She was quite tired today. Maybe once she was done talking with Jimmy, she'd take a break from working, and go back to bed for a bit, she figured.

"I've been all right. I have a date tonight," Jimmy said, sounding proud of himself.

"Oh really?" Lily asked, an eyebrow raised. "What's her name? Where did you meet her?"

"Why, are you jealous?" Jimmy teased.

"Oh, so very!" Lily teased back, a huge grin on her face.

"Her name is Lexi," Jimmy answered. "She is a black woman, and I usually don't date outside of my race, but she is really pretty, and seems nice enough. I figured I'd give it a try. I met her at the Laundromat. She was out of fabric softener, so I gave her some of mine. She was really appreciative. We talked for a while, and ended up making a date by the time our clothes were dried. Actually, hers took a good half hour more than mine to dry, but I stayed and waited for hers to dry. Was that creepy? I just really enjoyed talking with her."

Lily laughed at Jimmy's concern. "No, it wan't weird. It was sweet. I'm sure she appreciated that."

"I'm really excited, but nervous at the same time. You know, I haven't been on a date in a very long time," Jimmy confessed.

"I'm sure you'll do fine. Just be yourself!" Lily assured him.

"Thanks. Do you mind if I stop over after work?" Jimmy then asked. "I want your opinion on my outfit. I don't want to go on my date looking like a jerk."

Lily laughed. "How do you look like a jerk?" she asked.

"By being unstylish," Jimmy answered simply.

Lily laughed again. "All right, no problem. Just as long at it's before six. Rufus and I are going out tonight."

"Thanks, Lily. By the way, I have a reason for calling you other than me needing your help," Jimmy said.

Lily raised an eyebrow and smiled. "And what would that be?"

"I know something you don't know," Jimmy sang.

"What?" Lily asked, her curiosity instantly piqued.

"I don't know if I should tell you. I'm sure he wants it to be a surprise. I probably shouldn't have even called you to tell you," Jimmy said mysteriously.

"Well, now you _have_ to tell me!" Lily said, her curiosity past its limit.

"Well, I saw Rufus at a very interesting place as I was driving by in my cab today," Jimmy announced.

"What interesting place?" Lily asked, her stomach dropping a bit. "Bad interesting or good interesting?"

"Good interesting!" Jimmy confirmed. "In fact, I think you'd be quite thrilled to hear about which place I saw him in."

Lily gripped the phone receiver tightly. "Where was he?"

Jimmy paused. "I don't know if I should tell you. Like I said, he probably wants it to be a surprise."

"I'll pretend to be surprised. Where was he, Jimmy?" Lily asked, insistently now.

"Okay, okay! I'll tell you! He was at the jewelry store, looking at rings," Jimmy revealed. "I know he was looking at rings because I saw him through the window. He was holding a really pretty one up to the light."

"Engagement rings?" Lily asked in surprise.

"No, Lily. He was looking up shower rings. Jewelry stores carry those now, you know. He was admiring the way the brass sparkled in the light. He must like those better than the plastic shower rings." Jimmy's voice was dripping with sarcasm.

Lily rolled her eyes. "Shut up! You know what I meant."

"I know I shouldn't have ruined the surprise, but I figured you might want to know, so you can be prepared. You can look extra special, or however you ladies like to look when being proposed to," Jimmy explained.

Lily smiled. "Well, I very much appreciate you telling me, Jimmy. Do you know when he's going to propose?"

"Um, no. That's not exactly something you can see through a window," Jimmy said, sounding amused.

"Well, I thought you might have heard him say something!" Lily defended herself.

"Lily, come on!" Jimmy said. "I was in my cab _outside_ of the jewelry store. My windows may have been down, but the jewelry store door was closed. How good do you think my hearing is?"

"Well, you saw pretty clearly," Lily said simply.

"That was only because the store window is the size of Texas, not to mention so clear it's hard to tell if the glass if even there," Jimmy insisted.

"Well, it doesn't matter. All that matters is that Rufus is going to propose to me!" Lily said excitedly.

"Congratulations! Just try to act surprised, all right? If he suspects anything, I'm not the one who told you. You can tell him a friend saw him, but please leave my name out of it. All right?" Jimmy requested.

Lily smiled. "Of course! I better go. I'll see you after work!"

"All right," Jimmy agreed. "I'll see you at five-thirty."

"Sounds good. See you then!" Lily said, hanging up without waiting to hear Jimmy wish her goodbye.

She stood up from her desk, and twirled around in happiness and joy. She let out a cry of pure excitement. "He's going to propose!" she exclaimed. She was so excited she could hardly stand it!

~BA~

I knew it was kind of rushing things. I mean, Rufus and I had only been officially back together for about three months. Still, we had been married before, and dated for so long before that. We had history, and that had to count for _something_, right? Besides, _some_ people actually met and got engaged on the same day. It was rare, but it happened, and some of those couples are even still together today! Rufus and I have known each other for going on twenty-six years now. We know each other better than anyone else knows us. He and I are soulmates, and nothing and no one could ever change that.

I headed up the stairs. I was suddenly no longer tired. Hearing that Rufus was going to propose to me must have given me an extra boost of energy, I figured.

I headed to my closet, and flung the doors opened. I looked through my closet. Everything suddenly seemed too drab. Beige was boring. White was plain. Black was gloomy. Red was racy. I wanted something soft and romantic. Rufus had seen me in everything that I owned. I knew I had only one choice if I wanted to look my best for tonight, which I was sure was when he was going to propose to me.

Lately, we had just been eating in, but this morning he had asked if I wanted to eat out and have a date night. I was surprised, but agreed, happy to have one. Now that I knew he was going to propose, I was even happier to have one. However, it was imperative that I looked good if I was going to be proposed to.

I checked my watch. It was almost two o'clock. Jimmy would be over at five-thirty. If I left now, I'd have a good two hours for shopping, while still leaving extra time for travel and changing. I grabbed my purse, then headed down the stairs and out of the apartment. My goal was to get a dress that would make me look so hot, Rufus would practically be _begging_ me to marry him!

~BA~

There was a knock at the door.

"Who is it?" Lily asked with a smile in front of the door.

"It's Jimmy," Jimmy said from the other side of the door.

Lily yanked the door open, a big grin on her face.

Jimmy let out a long whistle. "Look at you, Miss Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman!" He walked into the apartment.

Lily was wearing a gorgeous royal blue wrap dress that cinched at the waist, giving her body the perfect hourglass figure. She wore no stockings, which revealed her perfectly smooth, long, hairless legs. On her feet she wore strappy silver sandals with a three-inch heel. Her toenails and fingernails were both painted a beautiful silver.

Lily raised an eyebrow and smirked. "Did you just call me a hooker?"

"_Hello_! Julie Roberts _after_ she got all dolled up and didn't have to be a hooker anymore," Jimmy said.

Lily laughed. "Well, thank you then. She looked Jimmy up and down. "You don't look so bad yourself! I'm impressed!"

Jimmy grinned. "Thanks! I do know how to look like a well-kempt, decent human being when I really try." He smiled and winked at her.

Jimmy was wearing khaki colored chinos that were rolled at the ankles, tan oxford dress shoes with no socks, a light blue chambray button down dress shirt with white buttons, and a tan belt. His bald head was covered with a tan hat that had a dark gray band wrapped around it all along the base right above the brim. He currently had on a pair of brown Clubmaster sunglasses with dark gray lenses.

"Well, you're looking hip, you hipster, you!" She smiled and winked at him.

"So, it's not too much, or too young for my age?" Jimmy asked, taking off his sunglasses, and folding them over the middle of his shirt.

Lily walked over to him and smoothed his shirt collar out. "Not at all! You look very handsome and stylish," she assured him.

"Thanks. You're looking amazing. You're going to knock Rufus' socks right off! Among other things." He grinned at Lily, and wriggled his eyebrows up and down suggestively. He also licked his lips in a seductive way.

Lily laughed, and playfully shoved him. "Stop it! You're as bad as Rufus."

Just then, the elevator opened. In walked Rufus holding a bouquet of red, thornless red roses.

"Good evening, my Love!" He said to Lily, placing a hand over her lower back and kissing her lips before, handing her the roses. "You look breathtakingly beautiful as always. Is that dress new?"

Lily smiled, so happy he had noticed. "Yes! I wanted something special for tonight." She kissed him again. "Thank you for the roses."

"You're very welcome, my Beautiful Love." He kissed her lips again, then nodded toward Jimmy. "Hello, Jimmy. What brings you here?"

Jimmy grinned. "I just wanted to make sure I looked good enough for my date tonight. I came here for Lily's opinion. My date's name is Lexi. I met her at the Laundromat. Not the best place to meet someone, but she's pretty, and I like her a lot."

"It doesn't matter where you meet someone was long as you like them. Good luck on your date tonight! You look good. I'm assuming Lily told you the same?" Rufus asked, nodding at him.

Jimmy nodded his confirmation. "That she did! Thanks again, Lily. You two have fun tonight. I'm sure you will." He grinned at winked at Lily, then grinned at Rufus and winked at him as well. "Catch you guys later." He pointed at them and winked again, clicking his tongue as he winked. Then, he took the elevator down to the lobby.

Rufus watched the doors close in front of Jimmy. "That guy's nice, but he's a bit strange. I'm surprised you like him," he then said, turning back to Lily.

"Ah, come on. He's a sweet guy. I'm trying to expand my horizons, and be open to new friendships that I normally wouldn't make. I don't want to be snotty and stuck up anymore." Lily walked over to the kitchen to get a vase to put her flowers in. She found one, filled it with water, then plopped the roses into it, and left it on the kitchen island.

Rufus came up begin her, and hugged her from behind. "Well, I don't think you're snotty and stuck up. Maybe a little uptight at times, but you've gotten better since we've gotten back together."

Lily smiled over her shoulder at him. "I guess you just bring out the best in me," she said.

"Just as you bring out the best in me," he said.

The kissed.

Lily inwardly sighed with happiness. She could hardly wait to become Mrs. Rufus Humphrey again! Well, after tonight, she knew, being his wife would simply be just two "I dos away. She grinned against his lips at the thought.

Rufus laughed. "What?"

"Nothing," she said, the smile still on her face as she pulled away from him. She took his hand. "Let's go eat."

"Just let me shower and change quick, then we can go!" he said, then quickly heading toward the stairs.

Lily sighed. She was eager to get going, but she supposed that, after almost twenty-six years, what was another half hour? Piece of cake!

~Begin Again~

Rufus held Lily's chair out for her, pushed her chair back in, then took his seat at their table for two in a nice private little corner of the five-star restaurant he had taken her to.

"This is so romantic and perfect for tonight," Lily said with a knowing smile at him.

"Well, I figured I hadn't done anything special for you in a while, so treating you to your favorite restaurant would be a good start!" Rufus replied. He smiled at her, then took her hand in his from across the table and kissed it.

Lily giggled. "I have a feeling it's going to get even better by the end of the evening." She bat her eyelashes at him.

Rufus nodded. "I'm sure it will too!" he said, taking a sip of his water. Lily must already be planning what they would be doing when they got back from the restaurant, he figured. He was glad they were on the same page.

The waiter came, and they ordered a bottle of red wine. They then looked over their menus while they waited for the waiter to return.

"We should have ordered Champaign instead. You know, since Champaign is good for celebrating." Lily winked at Rufus and smiled.

"What are we celebrating?" Rufus asked with a grin. "Did something happen to you today that I don't know about?" He wondered if Bass Enterprises got a new client or something. Not that they needed the money, but he knew it was still exciting for them when they closed a deal or got a new client.

"Nothing in particular...yet. You never know when something might come along for you to celebrate though," Lily said simply.

"O-kay..." Rufus wasn't sure what to make of Lily. She was acting a little strange tonight. He hoped she wasn't scheming behind his back again. It was things like Lily's hiding things from him that had caused all the problems in their relationship the last time. Though, in all fairness, he had hidden the whole Ivy thing from her as well. Still, he felt she had overreacted.

The waiter returned with their drinks, and they ordered their meals. They both ended up getting the chicken parmesan.

Lily grinned at him once the waiter had left to put their order in. "We even order alike. We really seem to be meshing well this time around, don't you think? I mean, I feel so much closer to you than even the other times we were together."

Rufus nodded, and took a sip of his wine before responding. He set his glass down, and licked his lips. "I agree. However, we've only been back together for three months, so can we really tell for sure?"

Lily nodded. "I can. I've been miserable without you, Rufus. I was never truly happy with Bart. The only reason why I ever picked him over you was both out of obligation to Bart, and anger toward you. As for William, well, I was still a little angry with you. William came along all charming and sweet, and I thought maybe it would be best for Serena and Eric for me to be back with their father. I guess I just had this romanticized fantasy about being married to William again. Even so, I was never truly happy with him—not like I am with you. This is even before I found out he was a lying, cheating ass." She took Rufus' hands in hers from across the table. "You're my soulmate, Rufus. None of my many other husbands even came close to you."

Rufus kissed her hands. "No one has ever come close to you either, Lil. That's why I couldn't marry Lisa. My heart wants what it wants, and it only wants you."

Lily smiled. "You know, you can ask me anything you want to ask me at any time. Now would be a really good time."

Rufus gently let go of her hands. "Like what?" he asked with a smile. He was a little confused. He didn't know what he was supposed to be asking Lily.

Lily looked down at the table. "Oh, I don't know. If there is any important question you have to ask me, you don't have to be afraid of my answer." She looked up at him, a bight smile on her face. "I can guarantee it will be the answer you'd want to hear."

Rufus was confused to say the least. "Um, okay. Do you think you'd always want to live in the apartment we live in now, or would you be open to getting one that is ours, and not something that was once yours and Bart's and then yours and William's?"

Lily looked a little surprised at his question, but she kept her cool. "I'd definitely be open to getting a place of our own just so long as we don't move far." She smiled. "I'd like to stay close to Charles, Henry, and Blair. Of course Serena and Daniel too."

"Of course!" Rufus said with a nod. "I love that little guy as much as you do!"

Lily grinned. "Henry or Dan?"

Rufus laughed. "I was talking about Henry, but yes, Dan too of course." He winked at her.

"On the other hand, maybe all of us should move somewhere much smaller than New York City. You know, in case you lose Henry again," Lily said, trying to sound serious, but the little smirk playing at the corner of her lips gave her away.

Rufus laughed. "Shut up! It could have happened to anyone." Over the 4th of July, he had been in charge of taking Henry on the carousel in Central Park. He had left for just a moment to get a drink, and when he had come back, Henry was gone. They had searched frantically for him, and even got the police involved. In the end, they found that Henry had taken a cab back to their place when he couldn't find Rufus and Lily. Neither Rufus nor Lily had ever told Chuck and Blair about the incident. Blair would have blown a gasket if they had.

Lily smiled as she took a sip of her wine. "Let that be a lesson to you that you can't turn your eyes away from a child even for a second! They're fast. You wouldn't think they could move so quick on such little legs, but they can."

"I know _that's_ right!" Rufus agreed.

"So, is there any other important question you'd like to ask me?" Lily then asked.

"Like what?" Rufus asked. He honestly had no idea at what she was hinting at.

Lily shrugged. "Oh, I don't know. I just thought you might want to ask me something tonight."

"What makes you think I want to ask you something?" Rufus asked, an eyebrow raised. Lily was acting stranger by the minute, he thought.

"One of my friends saw you today," Lily said.

"O-kay. What friend and where?" Rufus sipped his wine. She was acting _really_ strange, actually.

"I'm not supposed to say which friend, but my friend saw you shopping," Lily announced. She smiled as if she had just revealed something really clever.

Rufus thought back to where he had gone. He had gone to the drug store to get some cream for jock itch. He wasn't a jock, and yet he still itched. He blushed, and looked up at Lily. "Who saw me? A guy friend or a woman friend?" He was so embarrassed. He could handle a guy seeing him, but a woman would just be flat out embarrassing.  
"Does it matter?" Lily asked, sounding confused.

He nodded. "Well, kind of! It depends on the level of embarrassment I have to endure!" He blushed bright red.

Lily scrunched her eyebrows together in confusion. "Why would you be embarrassed? Anyway, what difference does gender make?"

"Guys understand, women just find it funny," Rufus stated simply.

Lily shot him a look. "You're kidding, right? Women don't find it funny, they take it very seriously!"

"Well, they can't possibly care as much as men. Men have to put up with the constant annoyance, and then suffer the embarrassment of buying the item to get rid of the annoyance," Rufus stated.

"Annoyance? What, do you think you just do it so you'll stopped being nagged to do so?" Lily asked, sounding angry now." She was shooting mental eye daggers at him.

"Well, yes! Why are you getting so angry about this?" Rufus asked. He could hardly believe that Lily cared enough about his jock itch problem to get so angry.

"No woman likes to be called a nag, Rufus, and you shouldn't do it because you think the other person wants it. You should do it because _you_ want to do it," Lily stated.

"Okay, for one, I never said you nagged me about it. How could you have? You didn't even know about it! Second, I do want to do it! I need the relief, believe me! I'll be relieved if I gets the results I want." Rufus blushed even more. He could not _believe_ they were talking about his jock itch, let alone over dinner.

"Well, then, just ask me!" Lily snapped. "Then you can be relieved."

"Ask you what, to put it on? I love you, Lil, but no thanks! It is something I prefer to do on my own." Rufus couldn't _believe_ Lily. She had clearly lost her mind.

"Of course I'm not going to put it on! I want _you_ to put it on right now!" Lily set her left hand on the table.

"I already put it on! Why the hell would I put it on here?" Rufus asked. Yes, he'd make that psychiatric appointment for her as soon as they got home.

"You already put it on?" Lily narrowed her eyes. "On whom?"

"On myself! Who do you think?" Rufus snapped.

"Rufus, what on earth are you talking about because I'm pretty sure it's not the same thing I'm talking about," Lily stated.

"My jock itch cream," Rufus said quietly. "I was itchy, so I went to the drug store to get some cream. I thought you said your friend saw me getting it!"

Lily took in what Rufus had just told her, then she burst out laughing. So, all this time you were talking about jock itch cream?" she asked loudly.

Rufus blushed a bright shade of crimson, his whole face turning hot. "Sh! Keep it down! You're embarrassing me!"

Lily was laughing so hard, she had tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry. It's just..." She lowered her voice, but was still laughing. "You thought I wanted to put it on you! Then I told you to put it on _here_! I even asked you who put it on!" Lily laughed even harder. "You already put it on. Oh my gosh, I can't breathe!" She slapped her thigh as she continued to laugh.

"Well, what did you _think_ I was talking about?" Rufus asked.

Lily suddenly stopped laughing. She blushed. "I thought you were talking about putting on a ring. I wanted you to put it on my left ring finger. My friend saw you through the jewelry store window today, looking at a ring. He told me you were going to propose. I thought you were gong to ask me to marry you tonight."

Rufus couldn't help it. He knew it was a very bad reaction, but there was no stopping the laugh as it fell loudly from his lips.

~BA~

"Oh my gosh, that's hilarious!" I cried. The conversation and her being confused—_me_ being confused—all made sense now.

Lily, however, suddenly wasn't laughing anymore. "Why is it so funny that I thought you were going to propose to me?" She pouted.

I instantly felt bad. "Lil, I'm not laughing at that. Now that I know what _you_ were talking about, it's funny because I can see how you must have been confused. No wonder you didn't understand why I put it on without you!"

Lily grinned. "It _is_ pretty funny."

They laughed about it together for a short bit.

Soon, Lily stopped laughing again. "So, why were you at the jewelry store if you're not going to propose? Or are you still? Oh my gosh, I ruined everything, didn't I?"

I shook my head. "You didn't ruin anything. I guess I'm caught. I thought about proposing, but then I decided not to. I don't think I'm ready yet. I don't think _we're_ ready yet." I took her hands in mine from across the table. "I'm sorry Lil. I didn't mean to get your hopes up. I didn't realize I was going to be seen there."

Just then, our food arrived. Our waiter set our food down in front of us and refilled our waters. "Would you like a refill of wine?" the waiter then asked.

"I would, please," I replied.

"Excuse me," Lily said, tears in her eyes as she threw her cloth napkin down on the table, and rushed off to the bathroom.

"She didn't like the wine?" the waiter asked.

"It's not that. She'll take a refill, please. She's just upset with me," I said, a little embarrassed. I felt bad. I hadn't meant to hurt Lily's feelings. I could just smack Jimmy for telling her. I knew it was him. It had to have been. I knew he was acting weird when I got back to the apartment earlier! I should have _known_ something was up with those two. I made a mental note to tell him to mind his own business the next time I saw him.

The waiter poured Lily's refill after having poured mine. "I hope it all works out for you two," he said quietly with a polite nod at me. "Enjoy your meals."

"Thanks," I said with a polite nod at him. As I watched him take off, I sighed. "I hope it works out between us too," I muttered. What was it about me that made me always upset her? The world may never know. _I _may never know.

~BA~

"Are you all right?" Rufus asked as Lily returned to the table.

Lily sat back down in her seat. "I'm fine," she said.

"I got you a refill on your wine," Rufus told her.

"Thanks," Lily said quietly, picking at her food. She then looked up at him. "Why don't you want to marry me?"

"I never said I didn't want to marry you, Lil. I just said I'm not ready yet. There's a difference," Rufus assured her.

"Well, why aren't you ready?" she asked.

Rufus sighed. "Lil, we've had so many problems in the past. We're both to blame. I'm not playing the blame game here, and I hope you won't either."

Lily shook her head. "I'm not."

Rufus continued. "We've only been back together for three months. I just don't want to rush things. We have all the time in the world. Not that we need to wait years to get engaged this time around. We don't. I just want us to take our time for a bit. We should get to know each other again, as well as get used to being a couple again. I just don't want to rush things and end up breaking up again. There's only so many times I can lose you without going insane."

This brought a smile to Lily's face. "Well, I guess losing me as many times as you have _has_ already taken a little toll on your sanity. I'd hate for it to take what little you have left."

Rufus grinned; glad she had her sense of humor back. It was a good sign. "So, you understand now why I want to wait?"

Lily nodded. She sighed. "I understand. I'm sorry I overreacted. I was just so excited at the thought of you proposing. I guess I was got a little embarrassed and disappointed when you didn't propose."

"Well, look at it this way. You'll have something to look forward to when I actually do propose." Rufus grabbed her hands in his again, and gently squeezed them. He smiled at her.

She returned his smile with her own.

Rufus then turned serious. "And when I do buy that ring, I'm going out of town to do so. I'm not letting any nosy cab drivers ruin my surprise!"

Lily blushed. "I never said it was Jimmy."

"You didn't have to. I knew he was up to something. I'm going to give him a piece of my mind for telling you," Rufus said.

"Are you sure? You have so few pieces left," Lily said, feigning seriousness. Again, the corner of her mouth twitching gave her away.

"Haha, very funny!" Rufus said. He grinned back at her. "Seriously though, why on earth would he tell you I'm about to propose? What a jerk! He should have known I'd want it to be a surprise."

"He was just happy for me, and wanted to spread the good news so I'd be prepared. He was just being Jimmy. Please don't say anything to him." Lily put on her best pleading, innocent face. "Please?"

Rufus sighed. He could never say no to her—at least not when she gave him that look, and she knew it! "All right, fine. But he better mind his own business from now on!"

"Thank you." Lily kissed his hands. "I'll talk to him, I promise."

They then enjoyed their dinner, and even ordered dessert afterwards.

"I have to say," Rufus said with a smile as they later left the restaurant hand-in-hand after he had paid the bill and left the tip, "I'm relieved to know what your answer will be when I do finally propose to you."

Lily grinned at him, and kissed his cheek. "Promise you'll make the proposal romantic?" she asked, looking up at him.

He gently stroked her cheek. "I wouldn't have it any other way," he assured her.

She smiled, and they softly kissed, full of love.

She then murmured into his ear," Now what do you say we go home and pretend it's our wedding night? You know, practice for the future." She winked at him.

He grinned at her. "I thought you'd never ask."

She grinned too, and they kissed, then hailed a cab to take them home.


	2. Bad Luck Blues

_**Begin Again Season Two**_

_**Episode 2: Bad Luck Blues**_

Lily sat at the conference desk with Chuck, gently tapping her foot against the desk. It was a rainy, dreary Friday the thirteenth. They were waiting with the accountant, a couple lawyers, and a few other members of the Bass Enterprise team. The only one missing was their new client.

Chuck looked at his watch. Mr. Gregory is five minutes late. "I do detest tardiness." He drummed his fingers on his desk.

"How long should we wait for him before we assume he's not coming?" Harris, the accountant asked.

"I'll give him another ten minutes. If he's not here by then, then I'll take it he's not coming." Chuck said.

Just then, Chuck's secretary, Tammy, buzzed in on the intercom. "Excuse me, Mr. Bass? Your one o'clock appointment just called. He has decided to go with Franklin Industries instead. He won't be coming."

"Thanks for letting me know, Tammy," Chuck said. "Damn it!" he then snapped, slapping his palm down hard on the desk. "We really needed that deal."

"Don't worry, Charles. There will be others," Lily assured him.

Chuck glanced at her. "We could have made _millions_ if he had let us build the new mall. "Ugh! I knew that scum was going to reel him in! Everyone at Franklin Industries is scum." Chuck slapped the desk again, angrily.

"Don't take it out on the desk," Lily said with a laugh.

Chuck shot her an unamused look.

Lily sighed. "Look, instead of getting angry, do something to get even. Steal Mr. Gregory back. If I know you, you have plenty more things up your back."

Chuck thought about it for a moment. "I need to first find out what Franklin used to reel him in, and go from there."

"I'll get on that right away," Melinda, Chuck's right hand woman stated. Melinda was a tall, Asian woman who wore glasses, and always wore suits. She was tough as nails, and more ruthless than any of the men that worked at the company. Heck, Melinda was more tough and ruthless than anyone Chuck knew other than Blair of course. Well, maybe even more so than Blair, but Chuck would never admit that to Blair.

Chuck nodded at her. "You do that. You find out, and there will be a hefty bonus in your next paycheck."

Melinda grinned. "You can count on knowing by the end of tomorrow."

Chuck knew that he would have the info tomorrow as promised. After all, when Melinda promised something, she delivered. He was very happy to have found Melinda and to have gotten her on his team. He was also glad that Blair trusted him. Blair didn't get jealous of any woman in his life. He loved that Blair trusted him so much. After all, a relationship couldn't last without trust.

The rain started pouring so hard then, it almost sounded like gun shots against the glass.

"Looks like _someone_ made God angry," Lily joked.

"Yeah, Mr. Gregory," Chuck said dryly.

Lily smirked.

Just then, the lights flickered, and the power went out for just a second before the generators kicked in.

Chuck sighed. "You're all dismissed early. I have no other meetings for today, so there's no use sitting around here doing nothing when I could be getting home to my wife and son."

They all stood up, and gathered their things.

Lily stretched. "I think I'm going to go home and take a nap! The rain always makes me tired."

"Do you want my driver to take you home?" Chuck asked.

Lily smiled at him. "If it's not too much trouble. I walked here, but I really do not feel like walking in the rain, or trying to hail a cab in this mess."

Chuck grabbed his rain jacket. "Let's go. We'll drop you off along the way."

So, they headed out of the office and out of the building, then into the waiting limo. Giles, Chuck's driver, held the door opened for Lily.

"Thank you, Giles, Lily said, slipping into the heated limo.

Chuck slid in beside her. "Take us to Lily's place first please," Chuck requested.

Giles got in the front, and soon they were off.

Lily placed a hand over her son's shoulder. "I really wouldn't worry about it, Charles. I have faith in you. If there's one thing I know about you more than anything else other than your love for Blair and Henry is that you don't take no for an answer when it comes to business. You always find a way to come out on top!"

Chuck smiled at her. "You're right of course. However, you forgot to mention someone I love."

"And who would that be?" Lily asked, a smile on her face.

"My mother," Chuck said simply. He kissed her cheek. "I'd be lost without you."

Lily had tears in her eyes. She knew Chuck loved her, but as all mothers did, she loved hearing him tell her so. It never got old.

She kissed his cheek in return, and hugged him tightly. "I love you too, Charles. More than you could ever imagine."

Chuck smiled at her, tears in his own eyes. "You know," he told her, "I always wanted a parent who loved me. For the longest time I never had one. Now that I have you in my life, I finally do."

Lily kissed his cheek again in response, then, an arm still around him, rested her head against his.

They arrived at Lily's place shortly after.

"Thanks for the ride. Tell Blair I said hello, and give my grandson a kiss for me!" Lily said as she climbed over Chuck to leave.

"I will. I'll bring him by to see you soon," Chuck promised.

Lily kissed his cheek. "You do that. Goodbye, my Love."

"Goodbye, Mom," Chuck replied.

Lily smiled. Oh how she loved it when he called her Mom instead of Lily!

She said a quick goodbye to Giles, who had held the door open for her, then she dashed into her apartment complex, greeting Vanya as he opened the door for her there. Then, she took the elevator up to her apartment.

When she got in, she tossed her purse on the kitchen island, then headed up stairs. All she wanted now was a nice warm bubble bath, then a nap until Rufus got home. However, when she got to the bathroom and tried to turn the light on, she realized the power had gone off at their place as well. She sighed. They didn't have generators because she hated the sound. Also, the power rarely went out.

She reached underneath the kitchen cabinet and pulled out some candles and a lighter. Oh well, she figured. At least the candlelight would make her bath more relaxing. However, when she went to turn the bath water on, she couldn't get it warm.

She cried out in frustration. "Well, so much for a nice warm bath!" she muttered. She'd have to call the landlord and complain about the water heater. However, right now, she was far too tired to do so.

She let out another cry of frustration, then headed to bed. At least nothing could screw up her nap, she figured.

She slipped off her went clothes, keeping only her underwear and bra on. Then, she climbed into bed, and closed her eyes.

_Bam! Crash!_

Lily opened her eyes and sat up straight in bed like a rocket. "What in Heavens was that?" she asked out loud. She then realized that the big replica painting of _Starry Night_ had crashed down onto her dresser, causing her perfume bottles to fall to the floor. The only good thing was that they had gotten their room carpeted, which allowed for the bottles not to break.

Lily looked at the mess, then lay back down on her bed. She was far too tired to deal with the mess right now.

~Begin Again~

Rufus looked out the window of his gallery, and watched the raindrops fall on his freshly washed windows. He had just washed them the day before, and now the rain had come, ruining his work. He knew come morning, the windows would be streaky.

He sighed. The worse thing about it was he had only had a total of two customers today, and only one of them had bought something. He guessed the rain was scaring all the customers away.

He turned around and sighed as he plopped himself down onto the couch he had in the gallery for waiting customers. He was bored out of him mind.

His mind started to wander to Lily. He loved her so much. He knew they had gone through the big talk about waiting to get engaged, but now, he was wondering if he had made a mistake in waiting. Did he really want to wait? He wasn't quite sure. Lily made him laugh. Lily always made him feel better hen he was down. His heartbeat skyrocketed to ten times its normal rate every time he simply just heard her name. Lily made him feel alive. He couldn't marry Lisa because he was madly in love with Lily. Rufus' heart knew what it wanted then, and he knew what it wanted now. It wanted Lily and only Lily, and Rufus knew that was never going to change. Ever since he had met Lily, it had always been about her. He had tried to love other women in the past, and it had worked for a while—whether it be days or even years. However, non Lily relationships always ended, and it was always because he couldn't stop loving Lily. Lily was always the end result. So why wait to propose? he figured.

He wouldn't. He grabbed his on break sign, hung it on the door, then locked the gallery up, and headed for the jewelry store.

~BA~

I knew it was a quick turn around. I mean, I had gone from not wanting to marry Lily just yet, to being absolutely sure I wanted to marry her, all in a matter of two days. But sometimes it just hits you out of the blue and you don't even see it coming. The mind is an amazing thing. Sometimes you don't have any idea you're ready for something until the day you're actually ready.

I parked down the street from the jewelry store, then I looked around to make sure there were no nosy cab drivers spying on me before I ran into the jewelers.

"Ah, you're back! I take it you've decided?" Geoffrey asked with a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eyes.

There were no other customers in the store, and for that, I was grateful.

I grinned. "I have. I want to marry her, Geoffrey. As I told you before, Lily's my world. I'm suddenly more sure than I've ever been. I want to propose to her, and I want to propose to her tonight!"

"Ah, a very brave man you are, proposing on Friday the thirteenth!" Geoffrey told me with a wink and a smile.

"Pf!" I hit the air with my hand. "I don't believe in silly superstitions." I raised an eyebrow at Geoffrey. "Surely you don't?"

"Well, from my experience, nothing is ever a hundred percent right on a Friday the thirteenth. Something always seems to go wrong," Geoffrey stated.

I smirked. "Nothing is _ever_ a hundred percent right on _any_ day—not just on a Friday the thirteenth."

Geoffrey laughed. "I suppose you're right. Don't listen to me. I'm sure your proposal will go perfectly. I'm just a silly, slightly superstitious old man."

"That's pretty. How about that one?" I pointed to a beautiful diamond ring. It was a fourteen karat white gold setting. The ring was meant to look like a flower. There were eight leaves—four smaller leaves layered on top of four bigger leaves. The leaves were all covered in diamonds. The band had three rows made of tiny diamonds with a thin sliver of white gold between each layer for a total of two white gold slivers. The base of the ring was pure white gold without the diamonds. The white gold setting was between the top layer of leaves, and it held a round diamond.

"We just got this one in!" Geoffrey said, unlocking the case, then pulling out the ring, and handing it to me. "It is a beautiful and unique ring, isn't it?"

I nodded. "It's a flower. It kind of reminds me of a Lily even though it doesn't really look like a lily."

"It's 1.37 carats in weight and 1.50 carats in size," Geoffrey explained.

I looked over the ring in the light again after making sure no one was peering through the window from a cab. After a moment of pondering, I decided it was the one. It was perfect for my Lily.

I looked at Geoffrey, and handed the ring back to him. "I'll take it!"

Geoffrey grinned. "Excellent choice! I'm sure Lily will love it! I'll get this all set for you. Would you like a blue box, a black box, or a red box?"

"Red please. Red for love," I said with a smile. Now that this was actually happening, I felt nothing but excitement. I was going to make Lily my future wife tonight! Well, technically she already was. I was just going to be making it official. I was so excited. I knew then that without a doubt, I was a hundred and ten percent making the right decision.

~BA~

"I'm sure she'll say yes," Geoffrey said as Rufus finished paying for the ring, and took the bag from him.

Rufus grinned. "I know she will. She told me that, if I were to propose to her, she'd say yes."

"Well, there you go! That takes the pressure off of proposing, doesn't it?" Geoffrey asked with a kind smile.

Rufus nodded. "Even so, I'm still a little nervous. She wants the proposal to be romantic, and I want to make sure it is."

"I'd say picking out a beautiful ring like that is a good start," Geoffrey said with a wink and a smile at him.

Rufus grinned. "Thanks. I'll keep you posted!"

"You do that!" Geoffrey said.

Rufus then headed back outside to his car. He looked around and still saw no sign of Jimmy.

"Good!" he said. "At least this time, it will actually be a surprise." He grinned. Lily wouldn't be expecting him to propose this soon. He could hardly wait to see the look on her face when he proposed! Now, there was only one thing left to do—figure out a way to make his proposal romantic.

He drove away. If the gallery was still dead, he could spend the rest of the day thinking up something while he waited for customers who didn't arrive.

~Begin Again~

Serena pulled her raincoat closer around her as she headed to the loft. She was just about to head up to the apartment when she saw a little black cat with no collar, looking sad. It was wandering around. It looked like he was looking for food.

"Aw, you poor baby! Are you lost?" Serena asked, scooping the kitty up.

The little cat meowed. It was a tiny little thing. It wasn't a baby, but it didn't look much older than a year.

"Don't you have a home?" Serena asked.

The cat just looked up at her with sad little eyes.

"Come on in with me. You'll catch a cold out here!" Serena said, tucking the cat underneath her raincoat, then slipping into the apartment. The landlord didn't allow pets, but Serena couldn't just leave the poor thing outside in the cold—especially not when the poor little thing was hungry.

"Sh..." she quietly warned the kitty as it meowed. "I'm not allowed to have you in here. You got to be quiet, okay? I'll get you something to eat."

The cat, as if understanding her, began to purr.

"Aw! You are so cute!" Serena cooed.

She got to the hers and Dan's loft, and knocked on the door.

Dan opened it up. "Hey, did you forget your key?" he asked.

"No, I just couldn't open the door while holding this little cutie," Serena said, stepping into the loft, and pulling back her rain coat to reveal the tiny black kitty she had underneath. "Isn't she cute?"

"She's adorable, but she can't stay here. Jerry is super allergic," Dan said, referring to their landlord. He sneezed. "My sinuses aren't exactly happy with her either."

"Jerry never has to find out, does he? And you can just take some allergy medication," Serena said. She set the cat down on the couch, and took off her rain coat. She draped the coat over the couch, then picked up the cat again, and began to gently stroke its head.

The cat started purring again.

"Aw!" Serena cooed. "She's just so dang cute!"

Dan rolled his eyes. "She probably has fleas."

"She does not have fleas!" Serena held the little kitty close. "He didn't mean it."

Dan rolled his eyes. "She can't stay here."

"Whatever. I just brought her in to get him some food anyway." Serena set the cat down, then walked over to the cupboard and pulled out a can of tuna. She popped it open, then took out a small plate and dumped the tuna onto the plate. Then she set the food down on the floor, and put the can in the recycling bin.

"This isn't a girl, by the way," Dan said, walking over to her with the cat. He set the cat down in front of the plate, and the cat started eating immediately.

"Poor baby. He probably hasn't eaten in days!" Serena said, watching the little cat with pity.

Dan sneezed. "See? I'm allergic."

"It's your own fault for picking him up," Serena stated.

"At least now we know that she is a he," Dan said.

Serena pulled out her cell phone. "I'm going to call the vet and see if I can get an appointment for today. I just want to have the little cutie checked out. Then I'll see if Mom wants her."

"Whatever gets her out of here," Dan said.

Serena stuck her tongue out at him. "Cat hater!"

"Dog preferrer," Dan corrected her.

Serena rolled her eyes, then turned her attention back to her phone call once whomever was on the other line answered.

A minute later, Serena was off the phone. "I was lucky! There was a cancelation, so I can get him in in an hour!"

"I'm going back to my writing." Dan kissed her cheek. "You do what you have to do. Just remember, after the vet, he's someone else's problem."

Again, Serena rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

~Begin Again~

Lily was in a terrible mood. She hadn't been able to sleep well. Once the rain had stopped, the construction down the street had started up again. The sound of a jackhammer wasn't exactly a lullaby. Maybe if she and Rufus ever _did_ move, getting out of the main part of the city would be nice after all, she figured.

When Rufus arrived home, he had a new bouquet of roses for her. These ones were pink.

Lily smiled weakly. "Thank you, my Darling." She quickly kissed his lips, then headed to the kitchen to put them in a vase with water. "Roses two times in one week? What did I do to deserve them?"

Rufus hugged her from behind, and kissed the side of her neck. "I just wanted to show you how much I love and appreciate you."

Lily turned around and hugged him. "I love and appreciate you too, my Darling." She kissed the side of his neck, then buried her nose in it. He smelled so good. She loved his Hugo Boss cologne.

"So, I was thinking," he said. "Why don't you and I go some place special for dinner tonight?"

Lily yawned, and positioned herself so that her face was now resting against his chest. "Oh, Rufus, do you mind if we just stay in tonight for dinner?" she asked, looking up at him. "I'm so tired. I don't know what it is, I just can't seem to get enough sleep lately. Maybe we can just cuddle up with a good movie and some Chinese food."

Rufus gently stroked her hair, then kissed the top of her head. "All right. Why don't you order our usual, or whatever it is you want? I'm going to go shower and change quick."

Lily yawned again. "All right." She took his face between her hands, and gently kissed him on the lips. "Thank you for understanding."

Rufus' eyes lowered, and he gently stroked her cheek, then kissed her again. "If you're happy, I'm happy."

"You make me _very_ happy," Lily told him, her own eyes lowered.

They kissed again, then Rufus went to take his shower.

Lily sighed, then went to order the Chinese. She loved Rufus so much. This time, she wasn't going to let him go. He was hers and only hers whether they ended up getting married again or not!

~Begin Again~

Rufus had wanted to surprise Lily with a rooftop dinner where he would then propose to her underneath the stars. Lily being too tired kind of thwarted his plan. But now that he had the ring, he didn't want to wait another day to propose to her! It had to be tonight.

He turned on the water for the shower. He would shower and get all clean and nice smelling for her. He would maybe even change into something nicer even though they would just be eating in.

He felt the water with his hand, and waited for it to get warm. It didn't. He turned the water off, and headed down stairs. Lily was just hanging up the phone.

"The food will be here in forty minutes," she announced.

"Lil, did you notice our hot water isn't working?" Rufus asked.

"Oh! I forgot all about it. I was going to call the landlord after my nap, and I forgot all about it. I'm sorry," she said.

"It's all right. I'll call her." Rufus then called the landlord, who informed him that hot water was out in the whole building. She wouldn't be able to get someone out until tomorrow morning.

"Well, that's not good," Lily said once Rufus had hung up the phone and told her what the landlord had said.

"Thankfully I'm not too sweaty," Rufus joked.

Lily grinned. "Don't worry. Neither am I." She walked over to him, and held him close. "I love the smell of your cologne anyway. I could smell you all day."

Rufus laughed. "That's not something you here every day. 'I could smell you all day.'"

Lily grinned.

"So, what movie should we watch?" Rufus then asked. He figured maybe he could get her to pick a movie where he knew there was a proposal in it. When the guy proposed, he could too.

"I'm in the mood for something scary. Remember how we used to go to horror movies all the time when we were in our twenties?" Lily grinned.

Rufus felt his heart sink a little. It wasn't very romantic to propose during a slasher movie. _"Hey, Lil, you know how her husband's trying to kill her? Well, with me, I'd never try to kill you. All I want to do is propose to you and marry you."_ Yeah, no.

"Are you sure you don't want to watch something romantic, like _The Notebook_?" he tried.

Lily laughed. "Yeah, right! I know how much you hate chick flicks. Besides, that movie's a bit much even for _me_."

"Horror it is!" Rufus said with a weak smile. Well, he could still make it special. He could put her ring in his drawer, and ask her to get his glasses out of the drawer. Or, better yet, he could write _Will You Marry Me?_ on a fortune sized piece of paper and try to slide it into her fortune cookie.

"Thank you!" Lily kissed his lips. "I have to go to the bathroom. I'll let you pick the movie. Just make it horror."

"All right," Rufus agreed.

So, when Lily went to the bathroom, Rufus surfed through the horror movies on Netflix. He decided upon _My Bloody Valentine_. At least it had a romantic holiday theme in it, he figured. Even if it did end in a bloody massacre.

When Lily got back from the bathroom, Rufus pat the seat beside him on the couch.

Lily smiled, and cuddled up next to him. He pulled a blanket over them, and took her hand in his. He kissed it. Maybe, he figured, he could just propose to her. It could still be romantic, just the two of them, alone together under a blanket. She'd never expect it. He had the ring in his pocket.

He stroked some hair out of her eyes. "Lil, you're my everything. My happiness depends on you. I could never live without you. I tried it before and it just didn't work," he began.

"Oh, Rufus, I feel the same way about you!" she told him. "You're my world. I've never been so happy with anyone as I am with you."

"I'm glad to hear you say that," Rufus began. He started to reach for the ring, but the doorbell rang just then.

Rufus held back a sigh as Lily got up to answer the door.

It was the delivery guy with their food.

Rufus got up and dug for his wallet. He got it out, then pulled out the cash and handed the food money plus a tip to the delivery man.

"Thank you kindly," the delivery guy said. Then, he was gone, and Lily shut and locked the door behind him.

Rufus was suddenly struck by genius. He would sneak the ring box into the fridge, then ask Lily if she'd mind getting them their drinks!

He luckily headed to the fridge, and put the ring box in the fridge while Lily was busy taking the food out of the bag, and setting it on the coffee table.

He shut the fridge. "Lil, will you get the drinks out for us please? Now _I_ have to go to the bathroom."

Lily looked up at him. "Sure."

"Thanks!" Rufus said, slowly walking in the direction on the bathroom.

Lily started to head to the kitchen, but then there was another knock at the door, so she headed over to the door instead.

Rufus held back a cry of frustration.

"Who is it?" Lily called out.

"It's me and Dan," Serena called from the other side of the door.

Lily smiled, and unlocked the door.

Rufus silently cursed. Why were they here? They weren't invited!

Lily opened the door, and in walked Serena, Dan, and a little black cat.

"What is _that_?" Rufus asked, walking over to them, and pointing to the cat.

"It's a little thing called a cat. It walks on all fours, eats, goes to the bathroom, sleeps..." Dan teased.

Rufus rolled his eyes. "I meant, what is it doing here?"

"What a precious little baby!" Lily said, taking the cat from Serena and kissing it. The cat cuddled up against her, and started to purr. "Aw! It's adorable! Is it a girl or a boy?" Lily asked.

"It's a boy," Serena replied.

"I didn't think Jerry allowed pets at the loft," Rufus said to Dan.

Dan shook his head. "He doesn't. We want to know if you guys want him."

Rufus was just about to say there was no way in hell when Lily spoke up.

"I'd love him!" Lily exclaimed.

Rufus sighed. Maybe Friday the thirteenth was bad luck after all.

~Begin Again~

"Are you sue he doesn't have a home?" Lily asked as she stroked the little black cat's head. He was so cute!

Serena nodded. He had no collar. I just bought him that one. I ran into a neighbor and she said that the cat has been wandering around outside for weeks. She thinks he was abandoned. She said he never let her get close enough to grab him, and she didn't want to call animal control since nowadays, most of the animals that go to shelters are euthanized because of lack of room. It's weird because he came right to me. He didn't even try to run! I took him to the vet and he is in good health other than being a little malnourished. He had fleas too, but they put some good flea medication on him to take care of those. They also gave him all his shots. He's just over a year old. He's been neutered. The vet says he might have been abandoned. She has seen many people in New York just abandon a pet when they move to a place that can't have pets. It's really sad. I don't know how people can just abandon a pet like that."

"I don't either. I used to have a cat when I was growing up, but I never had one since! I've always wanted another one though." Lily turned to Rufus. "Rufus, do you mind if we keep him? It would mean so much to me."

Rufus smiled weakly. "Sure, I guess. We'll need a little box and all that though."

"We can just put newspaper down until we can get one tomorrow," Lily said. She could tell Rufus wasn't thrilled with the idea of getting a cat, but she really wanted this cat. It had been so long since she'd last had a _pet_, let alone a cat. She had forgotten how good it felt to have one, or how much her heart melted with love when she had one in her arms. She kissed the little kitty's head.

"I bought some good kitty food at the vet. I left the bag out in the hall," Serena said. She then headed over to the door, unlocked it, then opened the door, and brought the food in. "I didn't want to bother with a litter box until I was sure he had a home."

Dan shut and locked the door for Serena, who had forgotten to shut it behind her.

Lily kissed the kitty's nose. He was so darn cute! "What should I name him?" she asked. "I don't think I want to go with the typical Blackie or Midnight. I want something different and unique."

"Inky?" Serena tried.

"Maybe," Lily said, considering it.

"Well, we hate to cut out so soon, but we have dinner reservations in a half hour, so we better be going," Dan said.

"What were you going to do with the cat if I said no?" Lily asked with a smirk.

"We were going to ask you to kitty sit," Serena said with a blush.

Lily laughed. "Enjoy your dinner."

"Thanks! Have a good night!" Serena said with a wave. She and Dan then left, via the elevator.

"What should we name our new baby?" Lily then asked, turning to Rufus while still stroking the cat's head.

Rufus shrugged. "_You_ can name _your_ baby whatever you'd like. I'm not a big cat lover. I've always preferred dogs. Jenny always wanted a cat, but I'd never let her have one. Hey, maybe she can have that one!" he said hopefully. He pointed to the black cat in Lily's arms.

Lily shot him a look. "Nice try, Rufus, but you already said I could have him. He's mine." She kissed the top of the cat's head, then held him out to Rufus. "Come on, just give him a kiss! I'm sure once you get to know him you'll love him."

_Merare!_ The cat cried out, and quickly swiped Rufus across the face.

"Ah!" Rufus cried out, holding his sore cheek, which now held a long red scratch mark. "Yeah, don't count on that," he grumbled.

Lily buried her face in the cat's neck to hide her giggles.

~BA~

"There, is that better?" I asked Rufus as I finished placing the Band-Aids over his scratched cheek. I had first dabbed it with a cool, wet cloth, then I had dabbed it with Neosporin so that it would heal faster.

"I suppose, but I'm going to look like an idiot with these bandages on my face. I'm not wearing them to work tomorrow," Rufus grumbled.

I smirked. "Well, at least keep them on for tonight. Let your scratch heal overnight uninterrupted." I gently stroked his cheek. "He was just scared, you know."

"He didn't scratch _you_," Rufus replied.

"Well, sometimes animals don't like men for some reason. I'm sure he'll be better once he gets used to you," I assured him. I felt bad, but I really did think the cat would adjust once he was around Rufus more.

"I doubt it," Rufus grumbled.

I sighed. "Look, if it's going to be a problem, then Jenny can have him. I just really thought it would be nice to have a pet again. Especially a cat. I just love cats! I had forgotten exactly how much until I held that little guy in my arms."

Rufus looked at me, and his expression softened a bit. "If you really want him, then he's yours. I'm not going to take him away from you. I'll just learn to steer clear of him whenever possible."

"Are you sure?" I asked. "I don't want him causing problems for us. I don't want this to hurt our relationship."

Rufus smiled. "If we could survive William van der Jerk, we can surely survive a little black cat!" He eyed my new little baby. "Even if he _is_ a little black bastard." He gave the cat the evil eye.

I laughed. I knew he and my cat would bond soon enough. I could feel it! After all, who didn't love cats? And honestly, who didn't love Rufus? I know _I_ did. I loved them both with every fiber of my being.

~BA~

Lily made a spot for the cat next to her on the couch, making sure the kitty had its own blanket to lie on. She had even put out a small bowl of his food, and a small bowl of water in case he got hungry or thirsty.

Rufus had found an empty cardboard box, which he filled with shredded old newspaper. He had then placed it in the bathroom.

Lily had showed the kitty where the box was so he'd know, then they had sat down to eat their dinner after Rufus had reheated it for them.

"Sorry I never got the drinks," Lily said as Rufus sat down with their drinks and the newly reheated food. "I was side tracked. Hey, didn't you have to go to the bathroom?"

"I went when I put the box in the bathroom. Don't worry about the drinks. I love taking care of my beautiful girlfriend." He kissed Lily's cheek.

Lily kissed his lips. "You're the best boyfriend a girl could ask for," she said.

"Well, you're the best girlfriend a guy could ask for, he told her. His eyes lowered, and he kissed her sweetly on the lips.

Lily sighed with contentment as she hungrily kissed him back. She was so in love with him. She really wanted to get engaged as soon as possible, but if Rufus wanted to wait, then she would wait. She wasn't going anywhere. After all, he was worth the wait!

~Begin Again~

Dinner had been good, and the movie had been pretty good as well.

"We never ate our fortune cookies," Lily said with a stretch and a yawn once they had finished the movie. She both looked and sounded tired.

Rufus remembered his idea to plant in her cookie the fortune asking her to marry him. He supposed it was too late to do that now. The ring was still in the fridge. Even so, he could still propose, he figured.

"Let's open our cookies up!" he said.

So, they did.

Lily read her fortune and smiled. "You will soon come into a lot of money," she read. "I hope that means Charles gets Mr. Gregory back."

Rufus opened up his fortune cookie. "If you don't take a chance, it will never come to be," he read out loud.

"Hm, that's odd," Lily said, looking over his shoulder at it. "I wonder what that could mean?"

Rufus smiled. It was as if his fortune cookie was telling him that the time to propose to Lily was now! He looked at Lily. "Who knows? These cookies are always so cryptic."

Lily laughed. "I know, right?" She yawned again, and stretched some more. "Mm, I'm ready for bed."

"I want to get another drink first. Do you want one?" Rufus asked her.

"Mm, no, I'm good, thanks," Lily said, gently petting her now sleeping kitty's head.

Rufus headed to the fridge to get the ring. He was going to propose to her now. He knew just how to do it, too.

He grabbed the ring, and shut the refrigerator door. He then took out a new Champaign flute, and quietly put the ring in it. He then filled the glass with Champaign, and headed back towards Lily. "Lil, there's something in my glass. Look! What is..." he trailed off when he saw Lily sleeping peacefully on the couch, her arm around her little kitty. He sighed. "It?" he finished. "Well, I guess tonight isn't the night," he then added sadly before heading back to the kitchen. He fished out the ring, then drank the Champaign in the glass in one go. He put the bottle back in the fridge, and the glass in the sink. Then, he put the ring back in the box, and the box back in his pocket.

He walked back over to Lily. The cat hissed, then jumped down, and ran off toward his bed.

"Yeah, the feeling is mutual," Rufus grumbled at him. He then picked Lily up, and carried her up to bed. He supposed Geoffrey had been right after all. Friday the thirteenth really _was_ bad luck!


	3. I Wanna Know What Love Is

_**Begin Again Season Two**_

_**Episode 3: I Wanna Know What Love Is**_

Rufus woke up before Lily, so he decided to make Lily breakfast. He kissed her cheek, then headed down stairs to the kitchen. The little black rat as Rufus thought of the cat, was sleeping curled up on his pillow on the floor, sleeping.

"That's the only time you're cute—when you're sleeping," Rufus said to the sleeping cat.

He headed behind the island and pulled out the waffle iron. He then went into the fridge and took out the ingredients to make the waffle mix.

He then brought everything to the island, and got to work.

He eyed the little black rat cat up from time to time. He supposed the way the cat had his little face tucked underneath his paw _was_ kind of cute. However, he knew that once that little jerk woke up, he'd be a terror again.

As Rufus made the waffles, he was suddenly struck by genius. After the waffle mix was done in the iron, Rufus took out the waffle that he had made bigger than usual, and he cut it into a heart shape. Then, he put it on a plate, and pressed the ring deep into the waffle in a lying down position. He did it this way so that it wouldn't be obvious upon first sight. Then, he covered the ring with spray whipped cream, and left the syrup on the side. When Lily went to bit into it, she would find the ring.

"Now, let's just hope she doesn't break a diamond off, or worse, a tooth," he mumbled to himself. He knew the ring was too good of quality for the diamonds to just break off so easily, and he didn't think she would bite down so hard she'd break a tooth on it, but, with his luck, one never knew.

Rufus made his waffles the usual way, then he cooked them both up some bacon sausage, and scrambled eggs. To drink, he put out orange juice and grape juice.

He then went to get the cups, napkins, and silverware.

"Where are the napkins?" he asked out loud to himself. "I know we have some. I just bought a new package the other day. I thought I put them up here..." He looked through the upper cupboards, and when he didn't see them, he looked through the lower cupboards. "Ah! Here they are," he said, taking them out of the cupboard behind the island, then standing up with the pack. He set the napkins on the island, pulled out a small stack, then headed back to the table with them.

He stopped in his tracks when he saw the little black rat cat had licked off the whipped cream, and was now eating Lily's waffle.

"No!" he exclaimed.

He dropped the napkins on the table, then picked up the cat.

The cat hissed at him.

He hissed back at the cat, and plopped him back down on the floor. He then quickly examined Lily's waffle.

His face paled when he realized the ring was missing. "Oh no," he said. "Oh no, oh no, oh no!"

He whipped around to face the cat, and pointed an accusatory finger at him. "**You**! You ate the ring, didn't you?"

The cat responded with an innocent sounding meow.

Rufus clenched his fists. "I'm gonna kill you if you..." He trailed off as he looked all around the tabletop, and then all around the floor around the table. He searched and searched to no avail. The cat had eaten the ring. It was time to kill the cat.

~BA~

I took a couple deep breaths and slowly let them out. "I will not kill the cat. I will not kill the cat. I will not kill the cat," I repeated over and over.

"I want to kill the cat," I grumbled. However, seeing as I wouldn't _really_ hurt an animal, and since it was against the law anyway, I settled for making Lily a fresh waffle. I once again made it a heart, only this time, no thanks to the rat cat, I had no ring to put in it. I also put fresh bacon, sausage, and scrambled eggs onto her plate just in case the cat had licked the old ones when I wasn't looking.

I set the table, this time keeping his eye on it. I wasn't about to let that little black rat cat ruin another breakfast!

I tossed Lily's old breakfast and sighed. I had two options. The first was to buy the ring again. That seemed too pricy and pointless. So, that meant I had to go with option number two, which ironically enough meant checking the rat cat's poop for the next few days until I found said ring.

I blanched as I rinsed off her old dish. Taking it from Rat Cat's poop meant I was going to have to wash that ring _really_ well, and spray it with disinfectant. Ew. Why did these kind of things always happen to me?

I heard Lily start to come down the stairs, and I sighed. I placed her old dish in the dishwasher then shut the dishwasher door before heading over to greet my beautiful girlfriend that would no thanks to the cat have to wait a few more days until she could be my beautiful fiancé.

I couldn't tell her about the ring of course, but she was sure going to hear about her not so precious little rat cat eating her original waffle!

~BA~

"You made me breakfast!" Lily said with a smile as she got downstairs and saw the breakfast Rufus had all set up on the table.

Rufus walked over to her, and pulled her close. "Good morning, my Love!" He kissed her lovingly on the cheek. "Guess what I made?" he then asked with a grin.

Lily smiled the beautiful smile that always made Rufus' heart race. "Hm... Let me guess..." She tapped her lips with her right index finger as if pondering a tough question. She then grinned at him. "Waffles?"

"Ding, ding, ding! You got it right!" Rufus told her.

Lily grinned. "Just what I wanted!"

They headed over to the table, and Rufus pulled out Lily's chair for her.

"Still such a gentleman," Lily said with a happy sigh. "How did I get so lucky to have you?"

"I'm the lucky one," Rufus said, pushing her chair back in, then kissing her cheek.

He sat across from her. "That little black rat cat of yours ate your first waffle, you know. I had it all set up nicely, and I turned my back for just a minute! When I came back to the table, he had licked the whipped cream off your waffle, and was eating the center of your waffle."

Lily laughed. "Really? I didn't think cats liked waffles!"

"I didn't either!" Rufus grumbled. He shot the evil eye at the cat.

Lily looked over at her new kitty. "Did you eat Mommy's waffle?" she asked it.

The cat let out a pitiful sounding meow as if he were afraid he was going to get in trouble. He then slowly walked over to Lily.

"Aw! Don't worry, Sweetie. It's okay. Mommy's not angry. You were just hungry, huh? Mommy will get you some food after I'm done eating my breakfast." She picked the kitty up and kissed his little head.

Rufus rolled his eyes. "'Mommy'?" he asked.

Lily nodded. "That's right! I'm his mommy now, and you're his daddy."

"Hardly!" Rufus grumbled. If it weren't for Lily's love for the thing, it would be out of the apartment and with Jenny before you could say Hudson, which was where Jenny was currently living.

Lily pouted at him. "You should be nicer to your son, you know."

Rufus shook his head and pointed accusatorially at the cat. "_That_ is not my son. Dan is my son. Scott is my son. Eric is a son to me. Heck, Chuck is more of a son to me than that little black rat cat is."

Lily looked down at her kitty. "Daddy didn't mean it. He's just feeling grumpy today since you ate mommy's waffle."

"No, I didn't like him before the waffle incident either," Rufus stated.

Lily shot Rufus a look. "Rufus, he really means a lot to me. Can you please just try to get along with him?"

"Tell _him_ to try to get along with _me_! I swear he's out to get me. I mean, look at the way he's looking at me!" Rufus nodded toward the cat, who was giving him the stink eye. "He's giving me a look to kill!"

Lily rolled her eyes and smiled. "Don't be silly, Rufus! He's just a kitty." She looked at her cat and started talking in a baby voice. "Kitties don't hate anyone, do they, Baby? No."

Rufus was the one to roll his eyes this time. "Oh brother," he muttered.

"Here, Baby, do you want a piece?" Lily broke off a piece of her waffle, not even mentioning to Rufus that she loved that it was in the shape of a heart. She fed it to her tiny cat, who gobbled it right up.

Rufus made a face. He was beginning to think she loved the cat more than she did his cooking.

Lily laughed as the cat ate the waffle. She then looked at Rufus, a big proud grin on her face. "I suddenly thought of the perfect name for him!" she said; excited.

Rufus raised an eyebrow. "What?"

Lilly grinned. "Waffles!"

Rufus couldn't help but grin too. As much as he disliked the cat, he had to admit, it _was_ a really cute name for a cat. After all, you could never go wrong with waffles!  
"You like it?" Lily asked, still excited.

Rufus sighed. He hated to admit liking anything about the cat, but he supposed, since it was only his name, and since Lily picked it out, he could make an exception.

He took her free hand in his from across the table and gave it a gentle squeeze. "I love it!"

Lily smiled big, and it made his heart race. Yes, he thought. Even though something he didn't like one bit was going to be named after his favorite food ever, Waffles was the perfect name.

~Begin Again~

After breakfast, Rufus cleared the dishes. Lily had offered to help him, but he had insisted she go get ready for work. He said that when he made breakfast, that meant he took care of the dishes as well. He didn't want to make Lily have to do anything. It would defeat the purpose of having made her breakfast.

She knew how lucky she was to have Rufus. She couldn't believe she had been dumb enough to let him go as many times as she had. Well, she wouldn't be that dumb again! No. This time, she was his forever even if he never proposed to her.

She got ready for the day, wishing she could take a shower. She'd have to take one as soon as she got back from work, she figured. The hot water was supposed to be fixed today. She hoped it was still on schedule.

She finished getting ready, then headed down stairs to kiss Rufus goodbye.

Rufus pulled her close, and kissed her passionately. "Have a good day, My Love. I'll miss you. Maybe I can join you for lunch?"

Lily kissed him back just as passionately. "I'd like that," she said with a smile. She gently brushed some hair out of his face. His hair was getting longer again. She loved it when it got that way.

"Is noon all right?" he asked her.

She nodded. "It's perfect."

"_You're_ perfect," he told her.

She kissed him again, wishing she could just stay back with him, and love him all day. She'd be back in his arms soon enough though. "Thanks again for breakfast. I loved the heart you made with the waffle. You're so good to me."

"Nothing but the best for my angel," he told her.

They kissed again.

"See you at noon!" Lily said with a wave and a smile.

Rufus blew her a kiss. "See you at noon."

She smiled as she pretended to catch the kiss. She then blew the kiss back and left.

She sighed with happiness as she headed down the elevator. She hoped Rufus eventually proposed, and she hoped he proposed soon at that! She didn't want to wait anymore. She was a hundred and ten percent sure that she wanted to spend the rest of her life and forever after with him. She had no doubt in her mind. And this time, she knew it would work. She'd see to it that it did.

~Begin Again~

Rufus arrived at the loft. He hadn't wanted to go to work without a shower, so he had called Dan, who had agreed to let him come over and shower there. Rufus hoped that when he came back tonight, the hot water would be back on. The boiler room of the apartment complex held the hot water heater, so at least he didn't have to worry about being home for the replacement water heater. The workers wouldn't have to enter his apartment at all.

Rufus showered at the loft, then for ready for work. Once he was ready, he headed back into the main room of the loft.

"So, how's the cat working out for you?" Dan asked.

"Don't ask!" Rufus grumbled.

Dan raised an eyebrow. "That bad, huh?"

Rufus nodded. "That thing hates me!"

Dan smirked, and nodded toward the scratch on Rufus' face. "I take it the cat is the one who did that to your face?"

Rufus nodded. "Lily held him out to kiss me, and instead he growled at me and scratched my cheek. He hissed at me today, and that's not even the worst of it!"

"Dare I ask?" Dan asked.

Rufus sighed. "Fine, I'll tell you. Don't tell Serena though. I know she'd keep it a secret, but I don't want to risk Lily finding out, so, just as an extra precaution, let's keep this between you and me, all right?"

Dan nodded. "Sure. What's up?"

Rufus went to sit down on the couch. Dan followed him, and sat beside him.

"Well, I've decided to propose to Lily again," Rufus began.

Dan smiled. "Really? That's great!"

Rufus nodded. "Yeah, it was until the cat ate the ring I was going to propose to her with."

Dan laughed. "Wait. What?"

Rufus then explained to whole about the morning from hell. When he was done, Dan burst out laughing.

Rufus crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm glad you find this so amusing," he said, not at all amused himself.

"I'm sorry, it's just..." Dan laughed. "Oh my gosh, so now you have to wait for him to poop, and then dig out the ring?"

Rufus nodded. "Unless you know of some other way."

"_There's_ a new way to propose!" Dan said. He laughed. "You can have Lily scoop the littler box, and when she finds the ring, you can get down on one knee and propose. 'Lily, I promise you this time it won't be a crappy marriage!'" Dan burst out laughing at his own joke then, hitting his own thigh, and tears streaming down his face. He was laughing so hard, he didn't seem to be able to stop.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up!" Rufus snapped. "You wouldn't be laughing if _you_ had to be the one to dig a ring out of cat crap."

Dan laughed a moment more while Rufus waited for him to finally stop. Then, once he had his laughter under control, he spoke. "I have just one thing to say about all of this."

Rufus raised an eyebrow. "And what would that be?"

Dan snorted. "Happy scooping!" He burst into laughter again.

"Shut up!" Rufus grumbled. He was so not amused, nor would he ever be. "_Anyway_, Lily knows he tried to eat her waffle. I just left out the part about the ring. She found it funny too. She even fed him part of her new waffle. She is amazed that even though he's a cat, he likes waffles."

Dan nodded. "That _is_ pretty bizarre," he agreed.

"So, since he loves waffles so much, she has decided to name him Waffles," Rufus announced.

"All right, I'm not a big cat lover, but I have to admit, that is an adorable name for a cat," Dan stated.

"It kind of is," Rufus agreed with a slight nod. "Even so, the only 'waffles' I'll ever love is the breakfast food. That cat is nothing but trouble."

Dan smirked. "Oh, I don't know. Maybe he's just a diamond in the rough!" He burst out laughing again at his own joke.

Rufus rolled his eyes, and got up from the couch. "Goodbye, Dan. Thanks for letting me use your shower."

"Have a good day," Dan called out. "And tell Lily I like the name she picked out for her cat. It has a nice ring to it!"

Rufus slammed the loft door shut in response. If the joke hadn't been at his expense, he might have laughed with Dan at his puns. However, it _was_ at his expense, so he didn't find it funny.

He headed down the elevator and out of the building. For Lily's sake, he would try not to get so annoyed with the cat—in the future! However, he needed at least the rest of today before he was ready to forgive and forget. Actually, he wouldn't be ready to forgive and forget until he had that ring back in his double rubber gloved hand.

~Begin Again~

The next day, Lily came home from work happy. Melinda had been able to get Chuck the info he needed. Franklin Industries had of course offered to build the mall for Mr. Gregory for less money, but Chuck had offered to match Mr. Franklin's deal, plus cut the price of materials in half. Needless to say, Mr. Gregory signed a contract with Bass Industries early that morning.

"We'll be taking a slight loss, but once companies start seeing that Bass Industries built the mall, we'll get more clients, and more clients mean more money," Chuck had explained to Lily.

Lily had nodded her understanding. "Just so long as he doesn't tell anyone he got us to cut the cost of materials in half. We can't afford to always be doing that."

Chuck had shook his head. "I put in his contract that he wouldn't bail on us at the last moment, nor would he tell anyone about our terms. If he breaks that contract, he could face jail time. Trust me, he's not going to tell anyone."

Lily had grinned at him, loving how her son was so smart. She supposed that is how he was able to take his father's business and make it his own.

Lily sat on the couch. Now that she was home, she kicked off her heels, let down her hair, and sighed with relief. It felt good to be home relaxing. Their hot water had been fixed the day before, thankfully, so now she could even enjoy a nice warm bath. She figured she'd wait until she and Rufus got back from dinner. Then maybe they could take one together. She licked her lips. Yes, that would be perfect.

Rufus came home then, as if on cue.

Lily smiled at him, then ran over to him and embraced him. She kissed him sweetly on the lips. "I missed you, My Love."

"Not half as much as I missed you," Rufus said to her, his eyes lowered. He pulled her even closer, and kissed her hungrily.

She continued to kiss him until she heard a little meow. She then remembered her kitty. She turned to the little black cat, bent down, and picked him up. "Did you miss Mommy? Mommy missed you too!" She kissed the cat on the cheek, and stroked his head for a moment while he purred. Then, she gently put him back down. She eyed the litter box. "It looks like it needs scooping!" she said, heading over to it.

Rufus quickly ran over to her and stepped in front of her. "No!" he said, holding his hands out in front of him.

"What?" Lily asked, wondering why on earth he had stopped her. "I have to change the littler box, Rufus. It stinks."

"Let _me_ do it. I'm sure you worked harder than I did today," he said, quickly heading over to the box, and putting on rubber gloves.

"I don't know about that. I just sat at a desk all day while you walked around showing people paintings to buy. But if you insist on scooping it for me, then I am much obliged. Thank you." Lily headed back over to the couch, and sat down. She put her feet up on the couch, and relaxed. She was surprised that Rufus was willing to scoop the box for her. He usually didn't want anything to do with Waffles. She supposed he was doing it just to be nice to her even though he clearly hated the job. He was so good to her! Every time she thought her heart couldn't possibly hold anymore love for him, he went and did something like this, which filled her heart with even more with love for him. She was so lucky!

~BA~

"You're taking an awfully long time with that box," Lily said. "Not to complain when you're doing something nice for me. Still, how long does it take to scoop a box?" Actually, she had no idea. Come to think of it, she hadn't scooped it _once_ since the cat had arrived. Rufus was always scooping it for her. She hadn't really paid much attention before because it was always scooped, and she never really had to think about scooping it because it was already done. However, now that Rufus had quickly run to scoop it for her today, it was making her a little curious.

"Sorry. I just like to be thorough. I'll be with you in a moment," Rufus said, sounding distracted.

"So, what's with the sudden interest in scooping the littler box?" Lily asked.

"I just want to show you that, for your sake, I can be just as dedicated to taking care of the cat as you are. You want me to love him, so I'm doing my best. I figured I can at least help you out with him even if it takes a little longer for him to grow on me," Rufus answered.

"Well, I appreciate you trying, Rufus. It's nice to know you take it serious when you make a promise to me. Even so, you don't have to scoop the litter box every time. I'm willing to do my share. After all, I'm the one who wanted the cat. In fact, you don't have to scoop it at all if you don't want to. I won't love you any less. Just try to be nicer to the cat, and give less mean comments," I said. I felt too guilty making him do all the scooping when, like I said, I was the one who wanted the cat.

"All right. If you insist on taking your turn, then you can have the next one!" Rufus grinned as he headed over to the kitchen sink, and turned the water on. "But, don't worry. I won't make you do all the scooping. If I'm near the box and see it is in need of scooping, I won't just leave it there for you to find when you get home."

I grinned. "Thank you. I appreciate that!" It then registered that he was taking a long time at the sink as well. "What are you doing over there?"

"I'm washing my hands," he said.

"With your gloves on?" I asked. "Anyway, if you have gloves on when you scoop, you really don't need to wash your hands after."

"I just want to make a hundred percent sure I don't have any nasty bacteria from the box on my hands," he said, ignoring my inquiry as to why he was washing his hands with gloves on. He had his hands underneath the water for a moment more, then he pulled the gloves off, and ditched them in the kitchen garbage. Then, he washed his hands sans the gloves before finally turning off the water. He dried his hands, then quickly stuffed them in the pockets of his jeans, and headed over to the couch.

He sat down next to me, then kissed my cheek. "So, how was your day?"

He was acting a little shady, but I decided to overlook it. So far, today had been a good day, and I didn't want that to end.

I cuddled in his arms and rested my head on his chest. Then, I looked up at him and smiled as I told him about my day, and about Chuck getting his client back.

"Really? That's great!" He leaned down and kissed me softly on the lips. "I'm so happy for you guys."

"Thank you," I said with a smile. I took his hand in mine and kissed it. "How about you? How was _your_ day?"

Rufus shrugged. "Same old, same old. I did sell a couple pricey paintings today, so I made some good money. I'm happy about _that_!"

"It sounds like we both had a good day today," I said, taking his hand in mine again, and playing with his fingers. I ran my thumb over his left ring finger. Oh how I wished it held a wedding band.

I looked at my left ring finger. And oh how I wish _my_ hand held an engagement ring and a matching wedding band to Rufus'.

I sighed. I guessed I was just going to have to keep on waiting. I just hoped he didn't keep me waiting for too much longer.

~BA~

"So, what should we do for dinner tonight?" Lily asked after a few minutes of talking and cuddling.

Rufus shrugged. "Wherever you'd like to go is fine with me. I'm starved!"

"Me too," Lily agreed. She thought about where she would like to go. "How about we go somewhere nearby, then bring dessert home and have it while watching a movie in bed?" she asked. "Or, when we get home, we could take a bath together, and then we can watch a movie and have our dessert?"

Rufus tightened his arms around her on the couch. "Or we could skip the movie, and go straight for a different kind of dessert," he murmured. He gently pushed some hair off her neck.

"Or, we could have the kind of dessert you have in mind in the bathtub, then we can have the kind of dessert I was talking about in bed with our movie," Lily said with a smile as Rufus kissed down the side of her neck.

"And then maybe we can have more of my kind of desert after the movie," he murmured as he continued to kiss her neck.

Lily closed her eyes. "Mm... The possibilities are endless."

"Let's just eat somewhere quick on Madison, then we can pick up some chocolate covered strawberries for our dessert," Rufus suggested.

Lily opened her eyes. "Sounds perfect!"

So, Rufus got up off the couch, extended his hand to her, and helped her up.

Then, they both got ready to go to dinner.

"You look so handsome today, by the way," Lily said, Rufus' face in her hands as they headed down the elevator. "Then again, you always do."

"And you're always the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. There's nothing you could do to ever change that," he told her, his eyes lowered.

Lily kissed him the rest of the way down the elevator. If he didn't propose soon, she was going to burst!

~Begin Again~

Rufus was relieved. He knew the little black rat cat had to pass the ring at any time. That is why he had run ahead of Lily to scoop the box. After all, he couldn't let her find the ring. How would he explain _that_?

It was a good thing he had gotten to the box first, for there, right smack dab in the middle of a particularly gross looking turd was the ring. It was one of the most disgusting things he had ever seen in his life. He had put on two layers of rubber gloves, and had used a scooper, yet he still felt dirty. He had scooped the rest of the poop and pee first, then he had scooped up the ring turd, pulled out the ring, then dumped the turd in the Litter Genie thing they had boughten to dump the cat waste into. Then, he had headed to the sink to rinse and wash the soiled ring. Thankfully, it looked unharmed. Even so, he'd have to remember to spray it with disinfectant spray later once Lily wasn't around. She had asked him so many questions it made him feel like a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.

Once he had finished cleaning the ring, he had set it on the counter, tossed the gloves, washed his hands, then quickly put the ring in the left pocket of his jeans.

He was so worried Lily was going to suspect something or figure out what he had been doing, but she hadn't. Thank God.

Now, after a wonderful, romantic dinner and after a quick stop at the store to get the chocolate covered strawberries, they were back home. Lily was upstairs, running the bath for them, and getting things ready.

Rufus was downstairs getting the Champaign ready. Lily had already taken the strawberries upstairs with her.

Rufus got the Champaign ready, then grabbed a can of whipped cream to use with the strawberries...or on each other. He was fine with either one.

Then, he headed up the stairs. "Lil?" he asked when he didn't find Lily in the bedroom. "Are you ready?"

"I'm in the bathroom. Bring the Champaign in with you!" she called out.

Rufus did as told. He frowned when he saw she was already in the bathtub. "I was hoping I could be the one to undress you," he said. He set the Champaign glasses and the whipped cream can down on the rim of the tub, then quickly undressed himself.

"Sorry," Lily apologized. "Next time, you can, I promise." She smiled and winked at him. Then, once he was fully naked, she extended her arms out to him. "Now come in here with me."

Rufus didn't have to be told twice! He got into the bathtub with Lily.

They repositioned themselves to that he was where Lily had been, and Lily was now lying between his legs in his arms.

Rufus grabbed the Champaign glasses, and handed one to her, while taking the other one for himself. He then held out his glass to hers in a toast. "To our eternal love."

Lily smiled. "You can be so romantic when you want to be. To our eternal love."

They clinked glasses, then sipped their drinks.

Rufus gently stroked Lily's hair, feeling all his love for her welling up inside of him. "Being with you makes me _want_ to be romantic. I just love you so much, Lil. I never want you to have to question my love for you."

Lily set her glass down, then took his glass and set it down next to hers. She then turned around and straddled him. She took his face between her hands, and kissed him passionately. "I never question my love for you. I hope you never question _my_ love for _you_," she said, her forehead resting against Rufus' now.

Rufus' eyes lowered with love for her. She shook his head. "Never," he whispered. "I know you love me just as much as I love you," he assured her.

"I really, really do," she said to him, her own eyes lowered.

They kissed, slowly at first, and then more passionately. Then, they were making love, gently, yet so full of love and passion. They took it slow, neither of them wanting to rush their beautiful moment together. There was nothing lustful about it. It was just pure, simple, irrevocable love for each other.

"I love you," Lily murmured as she held him close, and rested her head against his chest once they had finished making love.

"And I love you, Lily, My Love," Rufus murmured, gently stroking her hair. His eyes were lowered with love for her. At that moment, his heart was so filled with love for Lily, it seemed it was filled to capacity. However, he knew there was more room in it. He knew because he loved Lily more and more with every second that was always room in his heart for Lily.

Now that he had the ring, tomorrow would be the night. He had decided to stick to his original plan. They would have a nice candlelit dinner on the roof of their apartment complex. He would clear it with the landlord. She was a sucker for romance, so he was sure it wouldn't be a problem. Then, as they stared at the stars together after dinner and dessert, just when Lily would start to think their date was soon over, he would get down on one knee and propose to her. It would be perfect, it would be magical, and most importantly, it would be romantic, just as Lily had wanted.

He kissed the top of Lily's head, then continued to gently stroke her hair. Tomorrow, he would propose to Lily. It was on.

~Begin Again~

Lily had brought the strawberries in the bathroom with her. She figured it might be nice to feed each other in the bathtub. So, here they were, feeding each other strawberries, laughing, and having a good time together.

Rufus sprayed the whipped cream on the strawberry he was holding, then fed it to Lily, but not before spreading the cream all over her lips like lipstick.

Lily laughed, and licked the cream off her lips before biting into the strawberry. "Mm," she said, licking her lips again once she had swallowed the delicious chocolate covered fruit, "That is _so_ good!"

Rufus smiled. "You missed a spot."

Lily brought her hand up to her lips. "Where?"

"Right..." Rufus leaned in closer to her, then licked the little chocolate and cream spot on the corner of her mouth. "There."

"Oh. Well, thank you," Lily said. She then took a strawberry, sprayed it with whipped cream, and fed it to Rufus.

Rufus closed his eyes and moaned.

Lily smiled. "Good, right?"

"_So_ good!" Rufus agreed, opening his eyes.

"Would you like another one?" Lily asked with a smile.

Rufus nodded vigorously. "Please!"

So, Lily got another strawberry ready. Only this time, she slowly ran it up his chest until it got to his mouth.

Rufus laughed, then bit into the strawberry, closing his eyes yet again as he savored it.

Lily then slowly licked up the trail of whipped cream that was on Rufus' chest.

Rufus moaned, and ran his fingers through Lily's hair.

Lily got to his neck, and then turned her licks into kisses, which soon followed up to his lips.

Rufus sighed into the kiss, and placed his hands over her back. They then made love again, and it was even better than the last time, only this time it was a little more lust and desire filled.

Lily kissed him when they finished making love, still in the mood for him. She could't get enough of him. "Feed me another one," she ordered.

Rufus did just that, making sure not to forget the whipped cream. Only this time, he fed her without smearing it all over her.

She finished the strawberry, then pulled him in for yet another passionate kiss. "I guess it's true what they say," she then purred into his ear. "Chocolate really _is_ an aphrodisiac." She licked up the side of his neck. "Make love to me again, Rufus. Please?"

Rufus moaned. "All right, but it's getting a little hot in here. Let's take it to the bedroom, all right?"

Lily nodded.

So, Rufus picked her up, and carried her to the bedroom where they continued on the bed where they had left off.

As Rufus made love to Lily again, she decided something. She didn't want to wait any longer for Rufus to propose to her. It wasn't the old ages anymore. This was the twenty-first century! There was no reason the woman couldn't be the one to propose.

She knew it was soon for having just decided that, but she didn't care. She had already waited long enough. Tomorrow on lunch break she would buy him a nice ring, and then tomorrow night, she would propose to him. And _then_, she could finally be his fiance, and soon after that, his wife.

She smiled. It would be a night she would never forget. Rufus would become hers forever.


	4. Put a Ring On It

_**Begin Again Season Two**_

_**Episode 4: Put a Ring On It **_

Lily woke up happy. Today was the beginning of her and Rufus' married life together. True, they weren't married, but picking out the ring to propose was the first step in a married life. Well, technically, making the decision to propose was, but today was when she took the first physical step to make it happen.

As she showered, she thought of what kind of ring she would like to get Rufus. Would he find it too weird or girly to wear an engagement ring? He might. She could get him a simple white gold men's ring with a diamond in it. Nothing too flashy, but something he might not mind showing off even if it _hadn_'t been an engagement ring. Or, she could get him an ID bracelet with something romantic engraved on the back. Or, she could get him one of those chain bracelets that was popular with men nowadays.

She simply couldn't decide. Maybe she could hint around to Rufus, she figured.

She finished with her shower, then got ready for the day. Once she was ready, she headed downstairs.

"What is this? Are my eyes deceiving me? You're actually giving Waffles some food and fresh water?" Lily asked, a hand over her heart as she entered the dining area to see Rufus by the island, bending down to set Waffle's water dish down. The food bowl was now filled to the brim.

"Only to shut him up. He kept meowing," Rufus said.

Waffles ran right over to the food and started purring while he ate.

"Aw! He's happy for the food," Lily cooed.

"You're welcome!" Rufus grumbled to the cat.

"He didn't hiss at you this time. I think he's warming up to you," Lily said with a smile as she walked over to Rufus and kissed his cheek.

"I think his love for food takes precedence over his hatred for me," Rufus said before kissing her cheek in return.

"Well, at least that's a start," she said with a smirk and a wink. "Pancakes today! Looks good." She sat at the island to eat, for that is where Rufus had their food set out today. "Mm, and you know how much I love my pomegranate juice!"

Rufus sat down beside her, and smiled. "Remember Pomegranate the Pomeranian?" he mimicked the old lady that owned the dog. "'My Baby! Save my baby!'" He waved his arms and hands like he was in such distress.

Lily laughed. "You're terrible!" Rufus of course was referring to when he and Lily had been out on a paddle boat, and a little Pomeranian named Pomegranate had jumped out of his owner's boat, and into the water. The old lady who owned him had cried bloody murder, making them both think the dog was a child. Rufus had managed to save the dog, and the old lady was forever grateful. Her son, who was also in the boat had even given them enough money to get a nice dinner after as a reward for saving the dog.

"The sad thing is, you're starting to treat waffles like that old bag treated Pomegranate!" Rufus teased before taking a bite of his pancake.

Lily gasped, and playfully smacked Rufus' arm. "I am not! I would never take him in a boat and risk my baby drowning."

They both laughed at her joke.

They then ate in silence for a moment.

Lily then decided to hint around about what Rufus would rather have for his proposal gift. "So, Jimmy wants to get a men's diamond ring. He thinks people will respect him more on the streets if he has some bling as he calls it."

"Respect? He better watch where he wears that thing. That puny little guy will get robbed blind," Rufus said with a chuckle before taking a sip of his juice.

Lily smiled halfheartedly. "What do you think of men's rings? Do you think they're too girly, or do you think you could pull one off?"

Rufus thought about it for a moment as he chewed more of his pancake. "I don't know. I guess if the jewel was small enough. I wouldn't want anything big and flashy. To me, that would remind me too much of a woman's engagement ring." He laughed.

Lily laughed too, though she was slightly worried. Did he think women proposing to men was silly? "How do you feel about ID bracelets, or those chain bracelets that are popular lately?"

Rufus smirked at her. "What's with all the jewelry talk all the sudden?"

Lily looked back at her food, and moved her eggs around with her fork. "I'm just curious. The whole Jimmy wanting a ring thing made me think about men wearing jewelry. I'm not sure how I feel about it. I was just curious as to how _you_ felt about it."

"Well, I wouldn't want to wear too much of it, but as long as it looked manly enough, I'd wear any of the things you mentioned. I think I'd like a bracelet more than a ring though. A nice ID bracelet might be nice."

Lily smiled at him. "Yeah, those are nice." She dug into her yogurt with blueberries then. Well, at least now she knew what to get him. On her lunch break she'd head to the jewelry store and find out which one to get him. She could hardly wait!

~BA~

The time leading up until lunch seemed to drag. I was so eager to get to the jewelry store and pick out that ID bracelet! I had already planned what I was going to get engraved on the back—_This time, it's forever._ I always liked the look of white gold better than yellow gold, so I was going to get him white gold. I could already imagine him wearing it, thinking of me every time he looked down at it. I was so excited!

I took a cab to the jewelry store practically the second the clock hit noon.

I opened the door, glad that no one else was in the store. I wanted the jeweler's full attention.

He smiled when he saw me walk in. "Well, hello there! How are you today?"

I smiled politely. "I'm good, and you?" I asked as if we knew each other.

"I'm doing splendid!" he replied with a cheery smile. "Thank you for asking. What may I help you with today?"

"Well, I know it's not in the norm, but I would like to propose to my boyfriend tonight, so I want an ID bracelet to give to him in lieu of a ring. I hinted around this morning to see what he'd prefer, and he said that he wouldn't mind a non flashy ring, but, as a man, he prefers ID bracelets," I explained.

"It's not too out of the norm nowadays. I've had women come in here before to buy rings to propose," the jewelry said kindly.

I felt a little disappointed that I wasn't the first woman to come here so she could get something to propose to her boyfriend. "Did they all get rings, or did some get something else?" I asked.

"They all got rings. You're the first to get an ID bracelet. I have to say, I kind of like the change in pace! I think you're boyfriend's right. ID bracelets seem better suited toward men than rings do," the jeweler stated.

I smiled. "Well, at least I'm the first to step outside of the box—the ring box!" I joked with a laugh.

The jeweler laughed as well, and I was happy he had found my joke funny instead of just staring at me like I was an idiot.

"So, this is our selection of ID bracelets. Do you see anything you'd like?" the jeweler asked. I read his name tag, and it read Geoffrey.

Right away, I saw one that looked perfect. It was a black leather band with a white gold plate. "That one! I want that one!" I said, pointing to the bracelet.

"My, my, you don't waste much time, do you?" Geoffrey asked with a smile as he took the bracelet out, and handed it to me to look at.

I examined it. "This is white gold, right? And real leather?"

"But of course! I carry nothing but the finest materials in my store. I never sell knockoffs or imitations. Everything you see in my store is the real deal," Geoffrey assured me.

"I'll take it!" I said, handing him the bracelet back. I did love animals, so I felt bad getting real leather, but the way I see it is, me not buying real leather, or me not eating meat wouldn't stop the killing. I'm just one person. If I didn't buy it, someone else would. Besides, there was no use in making the poor cow die in vain now, was there?

"Wonderful! Do you mind me asking what the lucky fellow's name is?" Geoffrey asked as he got out the paper to write down what I wanted engraved on it.

I smiled as I thought of Rufus who would hopefully be my soon to be fiancé. "His name is Rufus," I said proudly. "He's so handsome, and so good to me. Oh, I hope he says yes!"

Geoffrey smiled. "And your name is?" He posed his pen above the paper.

"Lily," I answered. "Lily Rhodes."

Geoffrey raised an eyebrow.

"What?" I asked. "Have you heard of me?" I know it sounded a little vain to assume he'd heard of me, but I am in the paper a lot because of the events I go to, and of course my charitable donations and my involvement in Bass Industries. He was just looking at me funny, and it made me curious.

"I was just thinking what a pretty name that is," Geoffrey replied as he wrote it down. "R-h-o-d-e-s is it?"

"Thank you, and yes!" I said. What a nice man he was!

"I'll put his name on the front. That's what you want, right?" Geoffrey asked.

I nodded. "That is right. And, on the back, I'd like, This time it's forever."

Geoffrey wrote that down, then smiled up at me. "How very romantic."

I smiled as well. "Thanks. We've been married before, and it didn't work out. I wanted him to know that this time, history won't repeat itself. This time, our marriage will last forever."

"Well, I'm sure he will love it!" Geoffrey said. He then gave me the total, and I took out my credit card, and handed it to him to swipe.

"I just hope he says yes. I mean, he hasn't asked me to marry him yet. There must be a reason he hasn't yet. He said before he wasn't ready. What if I'm rushing him? What if he's not ready?" I asked.

Geoffrey handed me back my card, then pushed the receipt toward me to sign. He also gave me a pen to sign with. "Oh, I wouldn't worry about that." He smirked. "I'm sure he'll say yes."

"What makes you so sure?" I asked as I signed the receipt. I handed it back to him along with the pen.

"I just mean, I find it hard to believe any man would turn down a proposal from such a beautiful woman. And hey, he married you once, so what's to stop him from marrying you again, right? He obviously finds you desirable enough to marry." He winked and smiled at me.

I blushed. "You're too kind. And when you put it that way, I'm suddenly not so worried." I grinned. He sure knew how to make a woman feel good! In a non sexual way that is.

"I will have this ready for you in ten minutes. Would you like to wait?" he asked.

"Sure!" I looked at my watch. "I have enough time."

He smiled at me. "Great! I'll get right on this." He then headed back to the engraving machine.

I looked at the engagement rings while I waited. They were all so beautiful. I was kind of sad that I wouldn't be getting an engagement ring since I'd be the one proposing this time around. However, I still had my old engagement ring from Rufus, so that was good enough. I had given it back to Rufus when we broke up before, but he had sent it back to me, telling me he had given it to me, and so it was still mine whether we were together or not. Even when I was married to Bart and William, I never could get myself to pawn of it. Now, I was glad I hadn't.

Ten minutes later, as promised, Geoffrey came out with the newly engraved bracelet. "I think it came out beautifully. How do you like it?" he asked me.

I took it, and looked at it. It was perfect. I looked at Geoffrey and told him just that. "It's absolutely perfect! Thank you so much, Geoffrey. I just know he'll love it! I know _I_ do."

Geoffrey smiled. "You're very welcome, Miss. Lily. I'm glad you like it. Would you like red, blue, or black for the case?"

"Red, please!" I said. "Red for love."

Geoffrey smiled. He seemed to be amused with something, but I didn't ask why. I was just so excited that my proposal was falling into place!

I watched him as he boxed and bagged the bracelet. Then, he handed it to me. "Good luck, Miss. Lily. Please be sure to come back and tell me what his answer was." Again, he smiled and winked at me.

"I will. Thanks again, Geoffrey!" I said.

"You are very welcome, Miss. Lily," he replied.

I then left the jewelry store feeling as if I were on cloud nine. I had gotten the ring. Now, the only thing left to do was figure out when and how to propose.

~BA~

Lily had thought about proposing to Rufus all day. She figured she'd just do it at dinner. She wasn't the most creative. She never had been able to figure creative things out like her kids had been able to. However, she was sure that Rufus would love it as long as she spoke from her heart.

When she got back home, Rufus was waiting for her.

"Hello, Darling! You're home early!" she said, kissing him softly on the lips.

He kissed her lips in return. "I took off work early. I wanted to plan something special for you tonight."

She grinned, and raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And what would that be?"

"Well, how does a rooftop dinner sound?" he asked. "And by that I mean dinner on the top of our apartment's roof. I already cleared it with the landlord, and we will have it to ourselves. She is going to put a closed sign in front of the entranceway, and she said we can feel free to lock the door behind us. I figured it will be beautiful once night falls, and see the stars and city lights."

Lily's heart beat faster. This would be her perfect opportunity to propose to him! After all, dinner on the rooftop underneath the stars with a close up view of the city lights? It didn't get much more romantic than that! "I'd _love_ that!" she said.

He smiled, and took her hands in his own. "Excellent! Why don't you go get ready or do whatever you have to do? I'm going to go take care of some last minute things I have to do before dinner. Then, I'll get ready myself and we can be on our way."

"Sounds like a plan!" Lily said, a big grin on her face that she was not sure she could get off her face.

Rufus pulled her in for a slow and passionate kiss. "I'll see you in a bit," he said with a smile, his eyes boring into hers.

Lily sighed with happiness. "See you in a bit," she echoed.

Rufus then headed into the elevator, and disappeared behind the doors.

Lily watched him disappear, then squealed with excitement. Tonight was the night she was going to propose to him! She would wait until it got dark, then propose to him right underneath the stars with the beautiful city lights as their background. Heck, maybe she'd even get down on one knee!

She giggled to herself as she headed upstairs to take a nice warm bath, then get dressed into the most beautiful dress she had. She planned on tonight being perfect, and she wasn't going to let anything get in her way.

~Begin Again~

Rufus checked the rooftop. Everything was set. The table for two was set up with a white tablecloth and a candle lit in the middle. Soft music was playing on a little wooden nightstand he had brought up from their apartment. He had even covered the nightstand with a mini table cloth and rose petals.

He had red rose petals strewn on the table as well, and all around the floor surrounding their table. He had a bucket of ice holding a bottle of the best red wine the restaurant had. There was a bouquet of twelve long-stemmed, thornless red roses with a few lilies thrown into the mix. It was in a big glass vase with a heart-shaped mouth. The food was prepared on silver plates with silver covers over them just like they served food in the finest restaurants. He had originally wanted to make Lily something, but instead he had decided to just order in from her favorite restaurant. He didn't have the time to cook. He supposed he could have taken the day off, but he didn't want to miss out on any potential sales after he had spent so much money on Lily's ring.

He had gotten ice burg salad wedges with ranch and Italian dressings on the side for an appetizer. Filet mignon well done was for their main course, and French cut green beans and mashed potatoes with butter and gravy was for the sides. He also had water to go with their wine.

Once he was sure everything was to his liking, he headed back to the apartment to get ready for the night. It was going to be perfect, he knew. And this time, he wasn't going to let anything stop him.

~Begin Again~

Once they were both ready, they headed up to the roof for their dinner.

When they reached the roof, Rufus shut and locked the door behind them. "Now!" he said with a smile as he took Lily's hands in his own, "We have the place all to ourselves." He kissed her.

Lily wrapped her arms around him, and kissed him lovingly in return. "Thank you for setting this all up. I absolutely love it!" She broke from his embrace, and looked around. "The view is just breathtaking, and look at what you did for us." She eyed up the table and rose petals. She then turned back to Rufus. She stroked some hair out of his eyes. "You're so good to me. In fact, you're _beyond_ good to me. Thank you. I love you so much!" She pulled him in for another kiss, her fingers playing with his hair.

He kissed her back until she broke the kiss. "You're welcome," he said once she had broken the kiss. "Shall we eat now?" he asked.

Lily smiled and nodded. "Yes!"

So, they headed over to the table, and Rufus held Lily's chair out for her. He gently pushed it back in, and then sat down across from her.

"I can't get over how beautiful this is. You should forget the gallery and go into interior decorating instead. Or, in this case, exterior decorating." She winked at him with a smile.

Rufus grinned. "Na! I'll stick to working at the gallery and pampering you with things like this." He winked at her.

Lily blushed. "You keep getting sweeter and sweeter! It makes me feel like I don't do enough for you."

Rufus took Lily's hands in his from across the table and kissed them. "You do so much more for me then you realize, Lil. You make me happier than I've been in like _forever_, and you make my life worth living just by loving me."

Lily wanted to propose to him right then and there for being so sweet, but she wanted to wait until after dinner when it was dark and they had the stars and the beautiful city lights as their background. So, instead of proposing, she picked up his left hand, and kissed the ring finger symbolically, even if it was only symbolic to her. "Right back at ya!" She said with a grin and a wink. She then turned her attention to her food. She lifted off the lid, and saw what Rufus had gotten for her. "Wow!" She looked up at Rufus. "Is this Filet mignon?"

Rufus grinned and nodded. "Yes, M'am! I got it from your favorite place!" He lifted the lid to his own meal, and set it aside. In fact, everything is from there."

"I know everything will be good then," Lily said with a smile. So far, tonight was the perfect night, and she hadn't even proposed yet!

"So, if I had made it, it wouldn't be good?" Rufus teased with a smile.

Lily laughed. "You know what I meant!"

They ate their dinner then, having a pleasant conversation. They talked about their days, and simply enjoyed each other's company.

When they finished their dinner, Rufus took the wine bottle and poured himself another glass. "Would you like another glass?" he asked.

"Yes, please," Lily said. "So, not to be rude or anything, but does this dinner include dessert?" She grinned.

Rufus grinned too. "But of course, my love!" He went over to the table the music was on, and he reached underneath the table, and brought out another silver plate covered with a silver top. He brought it back to the table, and set it down.

"What is it?" Lily asked, excited to see what it was. "Is this also from the same place?" All the desserts there were amazing. She could seriously eat them all in one setting if her stomach would allow her to.

Rufus nodded. "That it is."

"What is it, what is it, what is it?" Lily asked, clapping her hands excitedly. She knew she was acting like a little kid, but frankly, she didn't care. She loved, loved, _loved_ the desserts of her favorite restaurant! That was part of my the restaurant was her favorite to begin with!

"Are you ready?" Rufus teased.

Lily clapped her hands again. "You know I am!"

"All right. Here it is." He whipped off the cover. "Voilà!"

Lily squealed with delight, and clapped her hands yet again as she saw the red velvet cake before her. "Yum!"

Rufus laughed. "I take it I made the right choice."

"Anything you had chosen from there would have been the right choice, but this is a really, _really_, good choice!" Lily said happily.

"I'm glad you approve," Rufus said with an amused smirk on his face.

As Rufus cut the cake for them (he had gotten a whole one), Lily ran her fingers over the ID bracelet box in her purse. It was a little dark out now, she could propose now, she figured. But then she changed her mind within seconds. No. She would wait. She wanted the moment to be perfect.

Rufus handed her a slice of cake. She took it. "Thank you, Darling."

They had their dessert then, and didn't say much as they ate.

"It sure is a beautiful summer night," Rufus said.

Lily nodded. It was the perfect weather outside. It was warm with a gentle breeze. It wasn't too hot, nor was it too cold. It was perfect—just like the night was turning out to be. "We have to enjoy it while we can. Fall will be here before we know it."

Rufus nodded. "I know _that's_ right!"

They finished their dessert.

"Would you like another piece?" Rufus asked her.

Lily shook her head. "No, thanks." She pat her stomach. "I'm stuffed!"

"Well, then, care to dance?" Rufus asked, standing up and extending his hand to Lily. He smiled.

Lily smiled too, and stood up from her chair, taking his hand in hers. "I'd love to."

And so they danced. It was rapidly getting dark, and the lights from the buildings were starting to turn on. It was a perfect, magical moment.

Lily rested her head on Rufus' shoulder while gently swaying with him to K-Ci and JoJo's "All My Life."

"_I will never find another lover sweeter than you, sweeter than you. And I will never find another lover more precious than you, more precious than you..."_

Rufus gently sang along to the song as they danced. Lily knew this was it. This was her moment. It was time to propose to Rufus. She would after the song. Right now, she just wanted to relax in Rufus' arms with the beautiful stars and city lights shining down on them like approving angels. Tonight would be their night, she knew. And after tonight, no one and nothing was ever going to take him away from her.

~Begin Again~

When the song ended, Rufus knew it was time. It was time to finally propose to Lily and make her his forever. He had sprayed her ring with disinfectant, then washed it again for good measure. Now, it was looking good as new, and was more than ready to be put on her finger.

He cleared his throat when the song ended, and reached into his pocket.

Lily, however, had made her way over to her purse.

"What'cha doing, Lil?" he asked her.

She smiled at him. "I just want to grab something quick."

He held back a sigh. It seemed like a jinx to propose to that woman! He hoped it wasn't a bad sign. "Just come over here for a minute. I want to talk to you about something important."

Lily looked at him, her happy expression changing a bit. She set her purse on her chair, and walked back over to him. "What is it?" she asked, sounding worried.

"I just want to tell you how much I love you, and how I could never live without you," he began.

Lily smiled. "Oh. I thought you were going to tell me something bad!" She looked visibly relieved. "I feel the same way about you. You know that."

"I'm glad to hear that," Rufus said. He dug into his pocket, and pulled out the box.

Lily looked at the ring, her eyes big, but she didn't say anything quite yet.

Rufus then got down on one knee. He was a little shaky. He didn't know why he was so nervous. He guessed it was because he loved Lily so much that this moment was crucial. He wanted it to be everything she dreamed it would be. "I know I said I wasn't ready before. I guess I was just scared. But now I realize that it would be even scarier if I never had you as my wife again. Lily, you are my sun, my moon, and my stars. My world rises and sets upon you, and you make my world a whole lot brighter. It would be my great honor and happiness if you would say yes to being my wife again."

Lily was crying now, her hand over her mouth.

"Lily, will you marry me?" Rufus finally asked, popping open the ring box, and revealing the ring.

For a brief moment, Lily just stared at the ring, still sobbing. Then, she nodded, and held out her left ring finger. "Yes!" she finally managed to get out. "Yes, Rufus, I _will_ be your wife again!"

Rufus grinned, suddenly feeling all the weight lifted off his shoulders. "You've just made me the happiest man on earth!" he said as he slipped the ring on Lily's left ring finger, then stood up, and kissed her passionately.

He could now die a happy man.

~BA~

She had said yes! I was so happy, I felt like I was walking on air!

"Do you like your ring I picked out? I wanted to get the flower because it reminded me of a lily even though it doesn't really look like I lily," I explained, my forehead resting against hers.

She nodded and smiled. "It's perfect, Rufus—just like your proposal was. Thank you for making it so romantic." She kissed me, then examined her ring. "It's so darn beautiful! I just love it so much!"

"So, you love it even more than your other one?" I asked with a grin.

"Well, I love them both because you picked them out for me. I think I'm going to get a chain and put my old one on it. I'll use it as a necklace," she said.

"There you go! My beautiful fiancé is so creative!" I said. Boy how I loved that word—fiancé. I loved it almost as much as I loved the word wife.

Lily grinned. "I love being able to say I'm your fiancé. "I'm your Fiancé, I'm your fiancé. I'm your fiancé! It never gets old."

I laughed, and pulled her in for yet another kiss. I just couldn't get enough of her and her beauty tonight. "I wanted to surprise you. I got the ring a few days ago, but... I really shouldn't be telling you this. I wasn't going to, but I think you should know where your ring has been."

Lily raised an eyebrow, and looked at her ring before looking back up at me. "Where has it been, Rufus?"

I sighed, then told her all about the Waffles fiasco—from the ring being consumed, to it being dug out of the litter box and cleaned.

Lily listened to the story, a hand over her mouth. I was afraid she was going to get angry I put it on her finger before first telling her where it had been. However, she just laughed when I finished telling her the story. "Oh my gosh, _that_'s why you were so grumpy that day! It wasn't just because Waffles ate my waffle, but because he ate my ring! And that's what you were doing so long by the litter box and sink, and why you always insisted on scooping the litter box for me! Just being nice my butt!"

I blushed. "I'm sorry I lied to you, but I couldn't tell you about the ring. I wanted my proposal to be a surprise."

Lily smiled. "I understand." She looked at her ring again. "You cleaned it well. It doesn't smell or anything. It's shiny and new looking."

"It _is_ new aside from the trip through your cat's body," I grumbled, still bitter about it. "Stupid cat!"

"Well, put it this way. We'll never forget the story behind this ring, the proposal, or Waffles—either kind." She smirked.

I smiled. "Thanks for not being angry," I said.

"Angry? Are you kidding me?" Lily gestured all around the roof. "Rufus, you proposed to me, and gave me the best, most romantic proposal a woman could ever ask for. Not to mention the hell you went through to get the ring back!" She grinned.

"Yeah, let's not mention that part anymore," I said, a little embarrassed.

Lily laughed, then pulled me in for a kiss. "I love you, Rufus Humphrey," she said, her forehead pressed against mine. "I can hardly wait to be your wife again."

"And I can hardly wait to be your husband again," I told her.

We kissed again, then held each other close as we danced, enjoying the beautiful music, the beautiful city lights, the beautiful stars, and for me, my even more beautiful fiancé. Fiancé, fiancé, _fiancé_! Like Lily said, it never got old.

~Begin Again~

They danced and kissed underneath the stars for a bit, then just cuddled up together on the roof, and enjoyed the view. Then, it started to get chilly.

"I'm sorry. I should have brought a blanket up here," Rufus apologized.

Lily smiled. "It's all right. You had so much to plan as it was." She kissed his cheek. "What do you say we gather all this stuff up, then head down to our warm bed?"

Rufus nodded, and pulled her in for another kiss. "All right."

So, he stood up, and helped her up as well, then they gathered everything up, and brought it back down to their apartment. It took a few trips, but eventually everything was back in their apartment.

"So, was your proposal as good as you dreamed it would be?" Rufus asked Lily then, pulling her body close to his.

Lily nodded, and draped her arms over his shoulders. "It was _better_ than I dreamed it would be!" She kissed him, then rested her forehead against his. "Now, what do you say we go upstairs and make this night even better?" she asked.

Rufus grinned. "I was _hoping_ you'd say that!"

Lily grinned as well.

_Meow_!

Lily laughed as Waffles walked between them, crying out.

"Is somebody's food bowl empty?" Lily asked.

Waffles meowed again as if in response.

"Aw!" Lily cooed, then picked up her kitty, and walked over to the food bowl.

She stroked Waffle's head, and Waffles began to purr. "I hear you ate my ring! How did it taste?"

Waffles meowed again.

"Not as good as your cat food, I know," she said, giving the cat's head one last rub before gently setting the cat down, and pouring food into his bowl.

Rufus smiled as he watched Lily with the cat. He used to think her baby talk to the cat was stupid, but now he found it sweet. She was such a goodhearted person. Sure, she could come off as cold-hearted to those who didn't know her. But to those who knew her better than they knew themselves, as it was in Rufus' case, she had a heart of gold. She was an amazing woman who loved her family—cat included.

Lily gave Waffles fresh water, and then scooped his box. "No more rings!" she teased, grinning over her shoulder at Rufus.

Rufus smirked, and shook his head. "Ha, ha," he said sarcastically.

Lily stood up, and headed over to the kitchen where she washed her hands. She then headed over to Rufus.

Rufus turned off all the downstairs lights, then embraced Lily.

They kissed in the dark for a moment. Then, he picked her up, and carried her to the bedroom.

"You are so beautiful," he said to her as he set her down on the bed, and gently stroked her cheek. "How did I get so lucky?"

"I ask myself the same thing every day. How did _I_ get so lucky?" she asked, stroking his cheek in return.

Rufus' eyes lowered with love for her, and he gently laid her down on her back as he got onto the bed with her, and continued to kiss her, his hands roaming down her body. "You're so perfect," he murmured.

"So are you," Lily murmured between kisses.

They undressed each other in the dark, and in hardly any time at all, were making love. It was full love and desire for each other, and it was even better than ever before for both of them. Rufus figured it was because they were engaged now. They were going to spend the rest of their lives together, and that made their lovemaking all the more special and perfect.

"This time our marriage will last. I promise!" Lily whispered in his ear.

Rufus kissed her softly and lovingly. He brushed his lips against her ear, then whispered in response, "I have no doubt."


	5. She's Got the Look

_**Begin Again Season Two**_

_**Episode 5: She's Got the Look**_

Rufus woke up with Lily in his arms, the sunlight coming through the window and hitting her hair like an angel's halo.

He gently stroked her hair, careful not to wake her. She was a pretty heavy sleeper, so he knew it was safe to stroke her hair without her waking.

He could not believe how beautiful she was, or how he got to be so lucky that they always ended up back together no matter what obstacles were thrown in their way. Now, she was going to be his wife again, and to him, that made him the luckiest man in the world.

He took her left hand in his, and examined her ring. It really did look beautiful on her finger. It was as if it was meant to be there. He also admired his work. He had cleaned it so well. One would never know where the ring had been prior to being on her finger now that he had cleaned it.

Lily started to stir. He let go of her hand, and kissed her cheek.

Slowly, her eyes fluttered open. She smiled when she saw him. "Good morning, Fiancé," she said, her voice still light with sleep.

Rufus grinned. "Good morning, my beautiful wife to be!" He leaned down and softly kissed her on the lips, his left hand entwined with her right hand.

Lily kissed his neck, then snuggled closer to him. "Mm, 'wife.' I like the sound of that," she said, still sounding tired.

"Would you like to sleep in a little longer?" Rufus then asked her. "I was thinking we could go out to breakfast and invite Chuck and Blair and Dan and Serena to tell them to the good news. We can also call up Scott, Eric, and Jenny and tell them. It's only eight o'clock though, so if you would like to sleep in more, you can."

Lily smiled at him. "That sounds like a wonderful idea!" She then placed her hands over the back of his head and kissed his lips. "But first, let's stay in bed for just a little bit longer. I want to enjoy my fiancé a little more." She began kissing down his neck, gently nipping at the skin, and leaving no question in Rufus' mind as to what she wanted from him.

Rufus smirked, and raised an eyebrow. "You didn't get enough of me last night?"

Lily took his face between her hands so that he was forced to look at her. "You should know by now, Rufus, I can never get enough of you."

Rufus' eyes lowered with love for her. "Lil..." was all he could manage to say. He kissed her, and soon, they were making love again. The truth was, he could never get enough of Lily either.

~Begin Again~

Two hours later, they were at the restaurant. Chuck and Blair had agreed to come to breakfast, as had Dan and Serena. Lily wanted to tell all her children about hers and Rufus' engagement together, so she decided that at the restaurant, they would call up Eric, Jenny, and Scott in a four-way call, and put it on speaker phone. Then, they would tell everyone at the same time.

"It's a good thing the host agreed to sit us in a private room," Rufus said as he held out Lily's chair for her.

Lily kissed his cheek, then sat down in her chair, letting him push it in for her. "Sometimes being Lily Rhodes pays off," she said.

"I guess so!" Rufus agreed. He took a seat next to her.

"I just texted both Serena and Charles to tell them where we'll be seated," Lily said as she set her cell phone down on the table.

"Good," Rufus replied. He then placed his right hand overtop of her left hand. He gave it a gentle squeeze. "So, I say we get married sooner rather than later. What do _you_ think?"

"Well, it takes time to plan a wedding. I kind of want a big wedding this time. Last time, everything seemed to go wrong, and we had to get married in the loft. Not that it wasn't special anyway, but..." Lily trailed off.

"But you wanted it to be somewhere more romantic," Rufus finished for her.

Lily nodded. "And maybe with a pastor this time. Would it be too weird to get married in a church since this will be my seventh marriage?" Lily bit her bottom lip. "Oh gosh that makes me sound like such a... Oh I don't know the word. Like someone who doesn't take marriage seriously!"

Rufus laughed. "Well, in all fairness, one of those marriages was annulled, and that was only because your previous husband wasn't dead after all. And another one of those marriages was a repeat. This one will be too, only with a better outcome." He smiled and winked at her.

Lily smiled back. "Still..."

Rufus took her hand and kissed it. "Lil, you may have whatever kind of wedding you would like. If you want a church wedding, then you're going to have a church wedding! Who cares what people think?"

Lily rubbed her thumb over the back of his hand. "I might like to have it on the beach. I don't know. I just really want a pastor to marry us instead of someone who got the license to marry us via the internet!"

"Well, then we'll find a pastor to marry us! What season do you want to get married in?" Rufus asked next.

"I don't think I'd like a winter wedding. I was thinking maybe a June wedding. That would give us almost a year to plan." Lily looked up at him. "Is that too far away for you? We can do it in the spring if you'd rather."

Rufus shook his head. "If my baby wants a June wedding, then she's going to get a June wedding!"

Lily grinned. She then picked up her cell phone, and brought the calendar up. She scrolled until she got to June of next year. "Let's see... "How about June twenty-second? It is a Saturday, and will be right when summer starts."

"June twenty-second it is!" Rufus agreed.

Lily put down her phone. "Really? Are you sure that's okay with you?" she asked. "Because this is your wedding too. I don't want to be the one calling all the shots."

Rufus smiled at her, and gently stroked her hair. "Lil, I'm marrying you. That's all I want. That and you being happy. As long as this is the wedding of _your_ dreams, it's the wedding of _my_ dreams."

"Every day I find myself more and more amazed at how I managed to snag a wonderful, caring and loving man like you," Lily said to him.

"And I wonder every day how I managed to snag the most beautiful woman in the world not only on the outside, but the inside as well," Rufus responded.

"Oh, Rufus..." Lily murmured, her eyes lowered as she pulled him closer.

Rufus' eyes lowered as well, and they kissed. In fact, they were still kissing when the kids arrived.

"Ugh! Please hold off on the public displays of affection when we're trying to eat," Dan said as he held a chair out for Serena.

Serena smiled as she sat down in front of her mother. "I think it's sweet!"

"Well, I find it nauseating. Don't get me wrong. I'm glad you two found your way back to each other, but I really don't care to see my father making out with _anyone_, let alone my mother-in-law no matter how much I love her," Dan stated as he sat next to Serena and across from Rufus.

"I agree with Dan, but that is the only time I will ever agree with him," Chuck said dryly as he sat next to Lily at the head of the table.

Blair rolled her eyes as she sat to Chuck's right, next to Serena. "Please! They're just kissing! It's not like they're having sex."

"Okay, can you please never refer to sex and my parents in the same sentence?" Dan asked.

"I'd like to be able to keep my breakfast down," Chuck added.

Dan nodded. "Exactly! Thank you."

Lily sighed. "Fine." She then grinned. "We have something exciting to tell you all after we order our meals."

Serena grinned. "I hope it's what I think it is!"

Dan smiled knowingly at Rufus, and winked at him.

Lily figured Rufus had told him he was going to propose. She wondered if Dan had told Serena, or if she was just guessing.

"I must say, it is such a relief to have you too back together. No offense, Serena, but your father is a real ass. Your mother deserves so much better," Blair stated. "Rufus isn't exactly the greatest catch, but at least he's worlds better than William."

"I don't know whether to thank you or ask you to apologize," Rufus stated.

Blair rolled her eyes, but grinned nonetheless. "I'm just kidding. Of course you're a good catch. Everyone knows you're Lily's soulmate!"

Rufus grinned, and gently squeezed Lily's hand. "That I am," he said, smiling lovingly at Lily.

Lily kissed his hand. "And I am his."

Rufus nodded his agreement, and kissed her hand again.

Lily sighed with happiness. Rufus made her world better.

The waiter came then, and they ordered their drink orders. Then, they looked over their menus, making small talk as they did.

Once the waiter came back, they ordered their breakfast. Then, once the waiter left, it was time to tell about their engagement.

"We want to call your siblings and tell them the news at the same time. We texted ahead and warned them all, so they are expecting our call," Lily explained.

"Whatever, just get on with it!" Serena said, sounding eager and excited.

So, Lily called up Eric and Jenny, and Eric called up Scott. Then, Lily pressed the conference button, and once they were all there, and it was on speaker, it was time to tell the news. She was so excited!

~Begin Again~

"Well, as you're all aware, we called you here to tell you some important news," Rufus began. He looked at Lily, and took her hand in his.

They smiled at each other and squeezed hands.

"Do you want to tell them, or should I?" he asked.

"We'll tell them together," Lily stated.

"On the count of three," Rufus instructed. "One... Two... Three!"

"We're getting married!" they said in unison.

"Yay! That is what I was hoping you'd say!" Serena said, smiling huge, and clapping her hands together with excitement.

Chuck smiled and nodded at them. "Congratulations! I know you both will be incredibly happy."

"It's about _time_ you popped the question!" Blair said to Rufus with a smile.

Dan nodded at his father and soon-to-be stepmom. "Congratulations!" He looked at his father directly. "I'm glad she said yes."

"Me too, Son, me too!" Rufus said with a smile, and a nod back at his son.

"I hope this time it's for good. I don't want you getting my hopes up for nothing like you did last time," Scott stated.

"Don't worry. I'm not going to let him go this time! He's basically going to be my prisoner. He's sentenced to life!" Lily teased.

Scott laughed.

"Seriously though, I love your father very much, Scott. This time, I'm not going to make the same mistake of letting him go. We're going to make it work this time. I promise you," Lily assured him.

Rufus wrapped an arm around her and nodded, though Scott obviously couldn't see the gesture of affection or the nod. "She's what keeps me sane and happy. I need her as much as I need oxygen. I'm not letting her let me go this time."

"Good! It better stay that way," Scott stated.

"Don't worry, it will," Rufus assured him.

"I'm really happy for you guys. I'll admit, at one time, like any kid, I wanted my parents back together. But, Rufus, you've always been like a father to me—a better father to me than my real one. So I say go for it. I'm so excited to have you as my father again," Eric said.

Rufus felt his eyes welling up. He rarely ever got emotional, but Eric's words had touched him. "And you've always been like a son to me, Eric. I'm glad to make it official again." He meant every word.

"Jennifer, how about you, Darling? You haven't said anything," Lily then asked.

"I'm just skeptical is all. I mean, let's face it, you've been down this road before, and it didn't work out. Heck, it never works out when you two are together," Jenny stated matter-of-factly.

"I understand your concerns, Jennifer, but I promise you things are different this time. I love your father very much, and I am not going to break his heart again," Lily assured her.

"You better not, or there will be hell to pay," Jenny warned her.

"Jenny..." Rufus warned his daughter. He appreciated that his daughter was looking out for him, but at the same time, he would not tolerate her being rude to Lily.

"Look, all I'm saying is that I don't want my father getting his heart broken again." Jenny said with a sigh.

"I can assure you, that's not going to happen," Lily promised.

"Yes, the only way my heart would have been broken is if Lily hadn't agreed to marry me. Trust me, Jenny. Lily and I have had our problems in the past, but I can assure you, it's not like that any longer. I love Lily, and she loves me. We love each other enough that we overcame our problems," Rufus assured his daughter.

"Well, all right then. I really hope this time works out for you guys. However, if it doesn't, don't come crying to me. I will not support you two being together again if you break up this time," Jenny warned.

"Duly noted!" Rufus replied.

"Ditto!" Lily agreed.

"So, have you set a date yet?" Eric asked, trying to change the subject.

"Yes! June twenty-second," Rufus responded.

"I'll mark my calendar," Eric said.

"Now that we're all on the phone, I might as well tell you I have a new girlfriend. Well, we've been dating for a few months, but I really, really like her," Scott said.

"Really? That's great!" Rufus said, happy for his son. Now that he himself had found the one great love of his life, he wanted the same for all of his children. "What's her name?"

"Veronica. She's got dark, shoulder length, curly hair and tanned skin. She's half Italian, half Brazilian. She's so beautiful," Scott said proudly.

"She sounds like she is!" Rufus said cheerily.

"How old is she?" Lily asked.

"She's twenty-five, so just a year younger than me," Scott replied. "She's so sweet! She's funny, and makes me laugh like all the time. She's such a kindhearted person. She's just amazing!" Scott cooed.

Lily smiled. "Sounds like you're in love!"

"I just might be," Scott replied.

Rufus grinned. "I'm really happy for you, Son." He took Lily's hand in his again, and gently squeezed it. "Hopefully one day you guys can end up being as happy as Lily and I are."

Lily smiled at Rufus, and Rufus felt his heart race. That was one of the biggest things he wished for his son besides his maintained good health—the kind of love he had with Lily Rhodes, soon-to-be Lily Humphrey.

~BA~

We all talked on the phone a bit longer, then our food came, and we said goodbye to Scott, Eric, and Jenny, and hung up so that we could eat our breakfast.

"Well, that turned out quite well!" I said with a happy smile before I dug into my waffles. I closed my eyes upon tasting them. "Mm, these are so good!"

Lily sighed. "I just wish Jenny was a little more excited."

"Oh, please! Don't let _her_ get you down," Blair said, hitting the air with her hand. "Jenny's always been very dramatic. She over thinks things and has paranoid tendencies. She's skeptical of a lot of things; not just your relationship."

Serena nodded. "I hate to say this about my sister-in-law, but it's true."

Dan nodded as well. "There was a reason she was sent to live with Mom all those years ago. She can get a bit out of control."

"Still, one would think she'd have grown out of it by now," Chuck said before taking a sip of his orange juice.

I had forgiven Chuck for taking my daughter's virginity. After all, it took two for that to happen, and even though Jenny had been vulnerable, she knew darn well what she had been doing. Not to mention all of this was years ago anyway. Even so, it still bothered me a little that Chuck was criticizing her now. I knew Dan, Blair, and Serena were too, but still. Due to Chuck's and my daughter's past history, when Chuck criticized Jenny, it stung a little more than it did when the others criticized her.

I decided to just hold my tongue. "I know once she sees firsthand how happy we make each other, she'll change her mind," I said, pulling Lily close, and kissing her temple.

Lily smiled. "I hope so."

I did too. For all of our sake. The truth was, as her father, I knew how Jenny could be. I only hoped she had grown up by now. If not, well, she was just going to have to deal with it.

~Begin Again~

Breakfast had gone nicely, and then it was time to say our goodbyes.

Rufus hugged his son goodbye. "Thanks for not telling Serena," he murmured in Dan's ear. It was nice seeing her excitement.

Dan grinned. "Anytime. I'm glad you got the ring back safely." He winked at Rufus, pointed at him, and made a clicking noise with his tongue.

Rufus blushed. He was still grossed out and embarrassed by the memory of picking the ring out of the cat's turd.

"I'm totally throwing you guys an engagement party," Serena said as she hugged Lily and kissed her on the cheek.

Lily kissed her on the cheek as well, and returned the hug. "That's not necessary. I don't want to put you out."

"You wouldn't be putting me out, Mom! I am _so_ happy for you and Rufus, and I want to do this for you. I think we should all celebrate your engagement," Serena insisted. "I won't take no for an answer."

Lily smirked. "Well, if you won't take no for an answer, then all right. That would be very nice. Thank you."

Serena pulled out her phone, and looked at her schedule. "How about we hold it the third week in August? That way, it will give me a few weeks to plan it."

"Sounds good," Lily agreed. "Let's hold it at my place. That way it can be more private than in would at a restaurant or wherever, and we'll have a lot of space. That is, if you plan on inviting a lot of people."

"Would you _like_ a lot of people?" Serena asked.

"The more people, the more engagement gifts!" Rufus joked, coming up behind Lily, a hand placed over her back.

Lily smirked. "A medium-sized group of friend will do just fine, but don't worry if you only get a small group."

Rufus, loving to see Lily smile (even if it was just a smirk), cracked another joke. "Wouldn't that require actually having friends? I mean, we have Eleanor and Cyrus, and you have Jimmy. Big crowd!" He grinned.

Lily laughed, and playfully swatted his arm. "Oh, stop! We have more friends than that. Or at lease people to pose as friends. Not to sound vain, but I know many people would jump at the chance to attend the engagement party of Lily Rhodes."

Rufus would have gotten offended that she hadn't mentioned that it was his engagement party too. However, hew knew as well as she did that he didn't hold the same social status as she did. He was only popular by association. Even then, he didn't know if he'd call himself popular.

"It's settled then! I just put it in my calendar. We'll have the engagement party at your place on August seventeenth! It's on a Friday," Serena announced.

"Perfect!" Lily said.

Serena hugged me goodbye then. "Congratulations on the engagement, Rufus. I may have wanted my mother with my father at one time, but now I realize you're the best thing that's ever happened to her aside from her children." She grinned. "One of those children she wouldn't even have without you." She winked, still grinning.

Rufus hugged her back tightly. "Thanks, Serena. I appreciate that."

Finally, after all the goodbyes were said, Rufus headed out with Lily. "So, where to now? he asked her.

She pulled him close, and kissed him. "Shopping?" she asked hopefully.

Rufus laughed. He wrapped an arm around her. "Sure. Why not?" He figured there was no time like the present to start making his future bride happy. And, as he always said, when Lily was happy, _he_ was happy. "Let's go."

~Begin Again~

A few days later, Lily was having lunch with Serena. Chuck had told Lily she could go home early, for there was nothing more she was needed for that day. He had kissed her cheek and told her to go call Serena and enjoy a nice lunch with her.

Lily had thought that was a wonderful idea, so had she called Serena up, who just happened to be free, and here they were!

"I want to give Rufus an amazing engagement present. I just don't know what. I suppose I could use the bracelet I got him, but I wanted to save that as a wedding gift. Though, I suppose an engagement party git would kind of fit," Lily said to her.

Serena raised an eyebrow. "What bracelet?"

Lily sighed. "Don't say anything. Nobody but the jeweler knows this, but..."

"What?" Serena asked before taking a sip of her coffee.

"Well, I had gotten tired of waiting for Rufus to propose, so I had decided to propose to him. I decided to get him an ID bracelet instead of a ring for a change. I figured it would be more manly. I had also asked him in a round about way what he would personally be more likely to where when it came to men's jewelry, and he said an ID bracelet. So, I went to the jeweler and picked out this." Lily took out the bracelet box from her purse, and handed it to Serena.

Serena cracked open the lid, and looked at it. She gasped as she picked it up and read the inscription. She looked at Lily. "Aw! Mom, this is beautiful and so romantic!"

Lily smiled. "Thanks. I was going to propose to him on the roof the night he proposed to me." At breakfast the other day, she and Rufus had told the kids all about how the engagement gone down.

"So, you had no idea he was going to propose to you, and he ended up proposing before you got the chance to," Serena said with an amused smile, figuring it out. She put the bracelet back in the box, shut the lid, then handed it back to Lily.

Lily nodded as she took it from her, and put it back in her purse. "I was just about to get it from my purse, then he called me over and proposed to me. I figured I'd save it as a wedding gift instead now. It will be romantic. We'll be married, then I'll give it to him with the promise of forever on it. Or do you think I should give it to him as an engagement gift since I was originally going to propose to him with it?"

"So, he doesn't know you were going to propose?" Serena asked.

Lily shook her head. "I didn't think there was any use in telling him. I didn't want him to feel bad. I'm glad he proposed to me instead. Truth be told, I'd rather be the one proposed to than the one to propose. I just wanted us to be engaged so badly, I was willing to sacrifice and be the proposer."

"Well, save it as a wedding gift then," Serena said. She took a bite of her panini, then grinned. "I have the perfect gift idea for you to give him as an engagement gift!"

Lily smirked, and raised an eyebrow. "And what would that be?" She took a bite of her own panini. She closed her eyes and savored the taste. "Mm!"

"Well, I was thinking, since Rufus loves art and all, why don't you get a nude portrait done for him?"

Lily nearly choked on her panini. "Excuse me?"

Serena nodded. "Yes! He'll find it so hot! Just imagine, you are alone with him in the bedroom, and you give him his engagement gift. He opens it up and sees you draped on a chaise lounge chair, naked, and posed seductively. It will drive him insane!"

Lily blushed. "Oh, I don't know. Where would he put it?"

"In the bedroom of course!" Serena stated. "He's going to want you all the time when he sees that!"

"What if we get company?" Lily asked.

"If you have company and you give them your room to stay in, or if anyone has to go into your room at any time, just take the picture down, and shove it somewhere it won't be found like the closet or something," Serena said simply.

"I don't know. I'd have to think about that one," Lily said.

"You don't have to do that. It was just a suggestion. I'll help you figure something else out if you decide not to go that rout," Serena said with a smile.

Lily smiled back, the wheels turning in her head.

~BA~

All through lunch and dessert, I thought about the nude portrait. The younger me would have been all for it, but the older me had reservations. Would Rufus still want a portrait of me and my naked body when I was going on fifty years old? Gosh, fifty sounded so old! I didn't feel old though, and actually, if I did say so myself, I didn't think I looked half bad for almost fifty. I didn't have a wrinkle on my body other than a few under eye creases.

I thought of how Rufus would react upon seeing a naked portrait of me. Serena was right, he did love art! And maybe he would get a little more turned on if he saw that picture hanging in the bedroom.

I licked my lips at the thought of him being extremely in the mood as we made love. The sex might definitely increase in quality and quantity. It was already amazing as it was. Imagine if it were to get even better than that! Maybe a naked portrait wasn't such a bad idea after all...

"Where would I even get one of those done?" I asked, not really meaning to ask out loud.

Serena grinned at me, and eyebrow raised. "What? The naked portrait?"

I nodded.

Serena grinned even brighter. "Well, there's a studio I pass by every day in Brooklyn. It looks like a pretty decent place actually, for being in Brooklyn. You could go there. Why? Are you thinking about doing it?"

I sighed. "Oh, I don't know, Serena. Don't you think I'm too old?"

Serena shook her head. "You're not old, Mom. Anyway, you're only as old as you feel, or allow yourself to look. I for one think you're looking smoking for almost fifty. I hope I inherited your youthful genes!"

"I can't!" I said, shaking my head. "I can't do nude. It's just not me."

"Well, then, how about just in sexy lingerie?" Serena suggested. "That might even be better, leaving something to the imagination."

I thought about that one. Then, I smiled. "I suppose I could do _that_ at least!"

Serena squealed, and clapped her hands together. "Perfect! Let's stop by the studio today and see when we can get you fit in."

I smirked. "You know, this is slightly disturbing that my daughter wants me to pose in lingerie if not nude for a portrait to give my husband."

Serena smirked too. "Trust me, I'm not thinking about the actual details. I'm just thinking about what you can do to make Rufus happy. I love you two together, and I really want it to work out between you two this time. You're the cutest couple ever aside form Dan and I of course." She winked.

I laughed. "Well, I appreciate your support!" I really did too. I knew there was a point in Serena's life where she had wanted me with William so badly, she had worked with him to get me away from Rufus and with William. It was so nice to see she'd grown up a little more, and was now back on Rufus' side. "All right. Let's head over to the studio and see when they can get me in."

Serena clapped her hands together and squealed once again. "Yay!"

I smiled, a little nervous. I guessed a little lingerie shopping would soon be in order. I'd have to find something ultra sexy that I thought Rufus would like on me. I made a mental note to see about getting a woman photographer, for having a strange man photograph me in my lingerie while I posed sexy would just be far too awkward.

~Begin Again~

"I don't know about this," Lily said as she and Serena walked into the studio. Now that she was actually in the studio, she was having second thoughts. "What if Rufus doesn't like it?"

Serena smirked. "He's a man, Mom. Trust me, he'll love it!"

The place looked a little old fashioned on the inside. There was an old brown couch in the lobby area. The floor was covered with brown carpet that didn't look like it had been washed in a while. Neither did the couch for that matter. The walls had orange and brown wall paper with a floral print.

"Well, this place is stuck in the seventies," Lily said under her breath.

Serena gently elbowed her and shushed her, then walked up to the reception desk with a smile.

"Hello, may I help you?" the pretty receptionist asked.

_At least the receptionist looks modern_, Lily thought. She was wearing a pretty red and white floral blouse with white dress pants.

"Yes, my mother here would like to make an appointment for as soon as possible to get her portrait painted. She wants to pose in her lingerie. She doesn't do nude." Serena turned around to smile and wink at Lily.

Lily blushed.

The receptionist smiled as she quickly typed on her computer. After a moment, she looked up at Serena and Lily and smiled. "You're in luck! It just so happens we have an opening today at three! We had a cancelation. Would you like to schedule it?"

Lily looked at her watch. That was in two hours. "Um, sure, I guess. I might as well do it right away before I lose my nerve."

Serena grinned. "That's the spirit!"

The receptionist smiled again. "What's your name?"

"Lily Rhodes," Lily replied.

"Soon to be Lily Humphrey! She's engaged, and wants this portrait for an engagement gift to give to her fiancé!" Serena said proudly.

"Congratulations!" the receptionist said sweetly. "I'm sure he'll just love it. I made one for my husband, and let's just say, he really enjoyed it. I was nude in it, but I'm sure lingerie will have just as good of an effect." She typed Lily's name into the computer. "After all, it leaves something to the imagination." She smiled and winked ay Lily.

"That's what I told her!" Serena said.

The receptionist grinned. "You're all set!" she then said to Lily. "I'll see you at three o'clock!"

"Will the photographer be a woman? I don't feel comfortable with a man," Lily said with a blush.

The receptionist looked apologetic. "I'm sorry, we only have a man. But, he's gay, if that helps to know."

Lily smiled slightly. "Well, it's better than a straight man!" Her smile turned into a grin. She supposed she could handle that.

"Great! We'll see you then," the receptionist, who Lily now after reading her name tag knew was named Cathy.

Lily nodded at her. "See you then."

"Bye!" Serena said with a wave and a smile to Cathy, who said goodbye in return and waved and smiled back to her.

Lily and Serena then left the studio.

"So, lingerie shopping we go?" Serena asked.

Lily nodded. "Lingerie shopping we go." She swallowed the nervous lump in her throat. She just hoped this didn't turn out to be a disaster.

"So, should we go Fredrick's of Hollywood or Victoria's Secret?" Serena asked as they hailed a cab.

Lily sighed. "Oh, I don't know. You pick."

"We'll have time to look at both. Victoria's Secret please," Serena told the cab driver once they were in the cab, and the door were shut.

"I wonder how they'll make you pose. Oo, this is going to be so much fun!" Serena said, smiling brightly, and clapping her hands together.

Lily smiled weakly back at her daughter. She wished she shared her daughter's enthusiasm. She would do this to make her daughter happy, and ultimately to make Rufus happy, but she didn't plan on having fun doing it! She guessed she'd just have to channel her inner twenty-year old. After all, she still had to be in there _somewhere_, right? She just hoped she found her come time for the shoot.

"Don't be nervous, Mom," Serena said as if reading her thoughts. She put hand on her mother's shoulder. "Look at it this way. At least he's just going to be taking photographs of you. He'll then paint your portrait from the photo. It's not like you're going to have to stay in that pose forever and a day while he paints you."

Lily sighed. "I know, but it's still embarrassing."

Serena laughed. "Why? You're better looking than half of New York City."

Lily raised an eyebrow. "Only half?"

Serena laughed again. "All right, you're better looking than _all_ of New York City!"

Lily laughed. "That's better!"

She and Serena grinned at each other.

Lily was suddenly relieved. Maybe she was being uptight. Rufus thought she was hot, and her own daughter had complimented her. She could do this. She grinned. And hey, if it got the reaction from Rufus that she was hoping for, it would be well worth the uncomfortable embarrassment.


	6. Portrait of a Woman

_**Begin Again Season Two **_

_**Episode 6: Portrait of a Woman **_

"I still don't know about this..." Lily trailed off as she headed back into the lobby to wait to get her portrait done. She had just come from hair and makeup where they had put waves in her hair, and did her makeup to make her look "sexy and desirable," as the makeup artist had put it.

Serena rolled her eyes, and placed a hand over her mother's shoulder. "Mom, _relax_! He's just going to take a few pictures of you, let you pick out the one you like best, then paint it from the picture. You don't even have to be present when he paints it. Just think of how much Rufus is going to love the painting." She playfully nudged her mother.

Lily sighed as she sat down in the lobby. "I suppose so."

Serena sat down next to her. "Trust me, he'll love it! Anyway, you look hot! They surprisingly have good hair and makeup artists here."

Lily raised an eyebrow. "So they need to be good in order to make me look hot?"

Serena laughed, and playfully pushed her mother. "You know what I mean!"

Lily grinned. "You know, you should do one for Dan instead. I'm getting too old for this kind of thing!" she said, still not quite sure a portrait like this was exactly her.

Once again, Serena rolled her eyes. "Mom, you are _not_ too old for this! No matter what age a man is, he's always going to want to see a woman naked—especially _his_ woman! And, as for me doing one, I'll see how yours turns out, and go from there." She winked at her mother.

"Sure, make me be the guinea pig," Lily muttered. "Anyway, I'm not doing a nude, so I will _not_ be naked in it."

"Nude, lingerie, anything works for a man. Trust me," Serena assured her.

"Miss Rhodes? The photographer is ready for you now," the receptionist said with a bright smile.

Lily looked at her daughter. "Come in with me for moral support?" she asked, an eyebrow raised.

Serena grinned. "Of course!"

So, the receptionist led them down a long hallway with the same dirty brown carpeting and tacky orange and brown floral wallpaper that the lobby had.

The receptionist stopped outside of a big white room. "You may go right in there. Giorgio will tell you what to do from there." She winked at Lily. "Have fun!" Then, the receptionist turned on her heel, and headed back to her desk.

Serena and Lily both raised an eyebrow at each other. "Giorgio?" they whisper asked. They both giggled.

"Hey, my parents are big fans on Armani. So sue them," said a very flamboyant man who suddenly appeared in the doorway. He was quite tall, and very skinny. He wore tight, medium-wash blue skinny jeans paired with bright yellow Doc Marten boots. He wore a tight black tee shirt that had a bag of Skittles on the front with shiny rainbow words that read, "Taste the rainbow" written over a rainbow that was above the Skittles bag. His hair was blonde and spiky, and he wore a variety of beaded bracelets over both wrists. He looked to be no later than his early thirties. He nodded towards the inside of the room. "Are you coming in or what? I only have an hour to shoot you before my next appointment."

Lily and Serena shot weary looks at each other, then slowly walked into the room. Neither one of them seemed so sure about this any more.

"So, Giorgio, how long have you been doing this for?" Serena asked casually.

"About fifteen years now. I used to help my father out when I was a teen, and I learned a lot from him. I majored in art and minored in photography in college. My mother always said I was born to paint and take pictures. I had a talent from a very young age. My mother said when I was three, I painted her pictures that looked like a ten-year-old had painted them. I guess I was a regular Thomas Kincaid, well, minus the lighthouse obsession." Giorgio nodded toward the dressing room, which was in the room against the middle of the far wall that was straight ahead as you walked in. "The dressing room's over there, Hon. You doing nude or lingerie?"

Lily blushed. "Lingerie."

"She's too scared to do nude," Serena explained to Giorgio with an eye roll.

Giorgio grinned, and shrugged. "It's all right. Nudes aren't for everyone. Some people aren't as confidant with their bodies as others are."

Lily glared at him. "I'm perfectly confidant with my body, thank you very much! I just don't feel the need for a naked painting of me to be up on the wall twenty-four-seven." She blushed at the thought, then quickly slipped into the dressing room to change. She still wasn't sure about this, but she pictured Rufus' reaction upon seeing the finished painting, and it gave her the will she needed to get through this.

~BA~

I looked myself over in the mirror. I was nervous. _Really_ nervous. What if I didn't look as good as I thought I did? I still felt like I was too old to be doing something like this. My body wasn't the perky, taunt body it used to be. Of course I had Botox here and there, but I hadn't had any work done on my breasts. I still thought I looked good, and Serena had sworn Rufus would be drooling buckets over me (her words—not mine) in this outfit, but I still wasn't sure. I had bought one outfit at Victoria's Secret, and one outfit at Fredrick's of Hollywood. I could have gone to one of the more upscale stores I usually go to for my lingerie, but I was too embarrassed to be seen there, so Victoria's Secret and Fredrick's of Hollywood it was.

I was currently wearing my Victoria's Secret choice. It was a white bustier with sheer sides and a black floral lace overlay that went from the middle to the bottom of the breasts and over my stomach with a little peep hole between by breasts, and a little black bow above the peephole. The bustier stopped just below my belly button.

For bottoms, I wore a matching "V-string" as they called it. It had thin black strings on the side, and the black lace overlay over the crotch with a tiny black bow above it. The rest of the underwear was the sheer white. I was also wearing sheer white thigh-high stockings, black guarders with little black bows at the top, and my black Christian Louboutin four-inch heals. Around my neck I wore my first engagement ring on a white gold chain.

I paused before pulling back the curtain, unsure it I could reveal myself to Giorgio—him being gay or not!

"Come on, Lily! Time is a ticking!" came Giorgio's flamboyant voice from the other side of the curtain.

I looked at myself once more in the full length mirror. I pictured Rufus' hands all over me from behind. I licked my lips. I could do this. For Rufus. So, I turned back toward the curtain, took one more deep breath, let it out, then pulled back the curtain. Here went nothing.

~BA~

Giorgio whistled when he saw Lily walking toward them in nothing but her lingerie and heels. "Woo! Look at you, Hot Momma!"

Lily blushed.

"You look great, Mom!" Serena chimed in with a smile.

"It's not too much?" Lily asked nervously.

"Well, I'd say it's too much as in too much clothes, but I'm assuming you mean too much skin exposure, which you certainly don't have to worry about," Giorgio stated. "You look fabulous though. I can work with this. We're just going to have to get your fiancé thinking about what is underneath all that." Giorgio smiled and winked at her as he motioned up and down with his finger while pointing to her outfit.

Lily blushed even deeper.

"Now, go sit on that chaise lounge chair." He nodded toward the black chaise lounge chair he had that was sitting five feet in front of the camera.

Lily walked over to it and sat down on it. It was comfortable enough, and made of satin. She just hoped it was clean. She shuttered to think of what else it had been used for in the past.

"Now, sit with your knees together and your ankles out. Lean forward a bit, and put your right index finger in your mouth," Giorgio directed.

Lily sucked on her finger, feeling a little silly.

Serena and Giorgio both laughed.

"What?" Lily asked, a little annoyed as she removed her finger form her mouth. "I did as you told me to do."

"Mom, I think he means just the tip of it. You don't need to swallow your finger whole," Serena explained; amused.

"Yes, we want this to look like you're trying to seduce him—not vomit up what you had for lunch today," Giorgio said; equally amused.

Lily resisted the urge to strangle at both of them, then did as told.

"Ah, yes! That's much better!" Giorgio said as he snapped some pictures. "Now, instead of resting your other hand on the chaise, I want you to slide it up your bustier, and place it over one of your breasts."

Lily blushed. "I can't."

"Sure you can! Don't worry, it'll be underneath your bustier. We're not going to see anything," Giorgio assured her.

"Think of Rufus, Mom," Serena chimed in.

Lily sighed. The things she did for her future husband!

So, back into her mouth her right fingertip went, and underneath her shirt and over her left breast her left hand went.

Giorgio took a few shots. "Sexy, sexy... Now, Try it with your hand over your right breast instead. Keep your finger in your mouth."

Lily did as told, and Giorgio took a few more shots.

"Excellent! Now, I wan you to slip your right hand down the band of your panties, and place your left hand on your left breast!" Giorgio ordered.

Lily blushed, but did as told. She knew there was no use in fighting it. Giorgio and Serena would just talk her into it.

"There you go! Part your lips a bit. Yes..." He snapped some more shots. "Now, lick your lips! Throw your head back just a bit! Same pose, only lying down this time. Great! Look at me now. Perfect!" Giorgio's orders changed almost as rapidly as he was taking shots. Finally, he was satisfied with that outfit. "Your daughter tells me you have one more outfit. Go change into that one now."

Lily stood up, and headed back to the dressing room without a word. She couldn't meet Giorgio's eyes, and she _certainly_ couldn't meet her daughter's eyes. She felt a little dirty. It felt weird to have been given such sexual orders during the shoot. Not that it was anything _that_ sexual, but still...

She slipped into her other outfit. This one was a red velvet teddy cut so low it barely covered her breasts. It had lace trim above the breasts and ruffles below them. It also had a ruffle at the skirt of the teddy. The teddy covered just below her crotch, hitting the very top of her thighs. She wore black sheer lacy thigh-high stockings and black guarders with no bows this time. She wore the same black Christian Louboutins she had worn with her other outfit. She kept her hair down like it had been for her first outfit. Her nails were French tips, so they matched with both outfits.

She headed out, and got whistles from Giorgio again.

"Girl, you are smokin' hot! If I were straight, I'd be all over you, I don't care what your age!" Giorgio cooed.

Lily smirked. "I don't think my fiancé would allow that." She sat down on the chaise again.

"Well, then it's a good thing I'm gay, isn't it?" Giorgio asked with a smirk and a wink at her.

Serena laughed.

Lily smiled too, feeling a little more into this now that she had already done some poses. Giorgio's sense of humor helped as well.

"Lie on your back with your hands above your head," Giorgio instructed her then.

Lily did as told.  
"Very good! Now, put your legs in the air, ankles crossed. Yes! Now, look at me," Giorgio continued.

Lily looked at Giorgio, then Giorgio came over and messed with her hair until it was fanned out around her face.

"Now, give me a seductive look. Excellent! You're a natural, Lily! An absolute natural!" Giorgio said, snapping several shots once Lily was posed to his liking.

"Now, let's get this chaise out of the way..." Giorgio said absentmindedly.

Lily stood up, and then she and Serena helped Giorgio push the chaise to the corner of the room, and out of the way.

Giorgio then went to a closet in the back of the room, then came back with a black silk blanket and two black silk pillows. He laid the blanket out on the floor, then placed the two pillows where he wanted them. "Lie down," he instructed Lily. "This way." He motioned which way he wanted Lily to lie.

Lily obeyed. Her body was very slightly curved to the left. Her bottom half was on the lower pillow from just below her butt to up the bottom two-thirds of her back. The other pillow held the rest of her body from the top third of her body to the end of her head. The square pillows were both tilted so that they looked more like they were diamond-shaped than square-shaped.

"Now, place your feet flat on the ground," Giorgio ordered next.

Lily did as told.

"Now, hold your necklace out in a straight line between your two hands, with it brushing against your lips.

Lily did as told, her necklace pressed against her slightly parted bright red lips.

"Perfect!" Giorgio snapped a few more pics. He then positioned her so that she was lying on the pillows the same way only this time with her arms bent across her head with her hair fanned out above her like a mermaid's hair. Her feet were titled to the right on the ground.

"Part your lips just slightly. That's it! Now give me those bedroom eyes!" Giorgio ordered, rapidly snapping away.

Lily obeyed, and after a few more shots, Giorgio was done.

"I think I've got some great shots! You're a natural beauty, Lily. You're very easy to work with. You can go get dressed, then we can head over to my office, and have a look at them," Giorgio told her.

Lily stood up, smiling, for she was glad to have this done with. "Thanks!" She then quickly headed back to the dressing room, for the quicker she was back in her regular clothes, the better, and less awkward she'd feel.

Five minutes later, she was dressed, and headed out with her purse, and the bag she had brought to carry her lingerie.

Giorgio then led the way to his office, where they all sat down.

Giorgio had already brought the pictures up, and was now ready to show Lily and Serena. He brought up the pictures on the screen facing them so that they could clearly see the pictures.

"Wow, they all came out fantastic!" Serena cooed.

"I barely recognize myself!" Lily said with a smile.

"It's hard to decide which one you should pick!" Serena said in awe. "They all look so good!"

"Well, how about this? We all pick a favorite without telling the other what we pick. Then, on the count of three, we'll all point to the one we like best!" Giorgio suggested to them.

Serena and Lily both nodded. "All right. That could work," Serena agreed.

Lily smirked. "Unless we all like different ones."

"It least it will still be narrowed down to three," Serena reasoned.

"Ready? One. Two. Three!" Giorgio said.

They all pointed to their favorite.

Lily was pleased to see that she and Serena both had their finger on the one of her on her back on the floor in her second outfit, her hair sprawled out around her like mermaid hair, her body turned on the pillows, her legs on the floor at a slight angle, her hands above her head, her lips slightly parted, and her eyes looking desire-filled.

Giorgio smiled, and turned his own screen around to reveal that his finger was on the same picture.

They all grinned.

"Sexy, yet classy at the same time," Giorgio commented.

"That's why I like that one!" Lily said with an excited smile.

"And me!" Serena confirmed, happily clapping her hands. "Oh my gosh, Mom, Rufus is going to love this!"

"So, I can get you a framed forty-eight by fifty-six canvas painted portrait of the one you chose. Also, if you would like, I can get you photos in any size you'd like for the rest, even in the one you chose if you'd like a photo of it beside the painted portrait," Giorgio explained. "Here are my prices." He pushed a paper with all the pricing information on it toward Serena and Lily.

"You look hot in all of them. You have to get wallets in all of them for Rufus, as well as eight by tens," Serena insisted. "I'll even pay for them as your engagement gift." She pulled out her Platinum AMEX. I'll take eight by tens and wallets of all of them, including the one you're painting. We'll also take the forty-eight by fifty-six canvas portrait you mentioned."

"Excellent! I can get the pictures to you by tomorrow, and the canvas painting will be done in two and a half weeks," Giorgio announced.

"Yes!" Just in time for the engagement party!" Serena said happily.

Lily blushed. "Serena, you don't have to pay. You'd be paying for my gift to Rufus! That's not right."

"Well, I'll pay for the photos then. You can pay for the canvas."

Lily took out her own Platinum AMEX. "Well, thank you!"

Serena grinned. "You're very welcome! I know Rufus will eventually be thanking me too." She winked and smiled at Lily.

Lily smiled back weakly. She sure hoped so!

~Begin Again~

The weeks leading up to the engagement party had come up fast. Lily had seen the canvas portrait and she had to admit, it looked pretty darn good! She actually loved the way she looked in it. Despite her doubts about Giorgio upon first meeting him, he really did have a talent for painting. Not only did he capture her likeness to a T, but he also made her look even more gorgeous than she could ever imagine!

She had blushed when she saw herself lying on the floor, half naked on such a big canvas. She sure hoped Rufus liked it!

After her approval of the portrait, Giorgio had it wrapped up in a brown paper bag style wrapping paper. Lily had gone out and bought a pretty silver bow, which she stuck on it. She also wrote on the wrapping in a beautiful silver Sharpie, _To Rufus, from Your Darling Lily_. _Happy Engagement! I can hardly wait to marry you for good this time._

The portrait was too big to hide at the apartment, so Giorgio promised to have it delivered the evening of the engagement party.

Lily was so excited for Rufus to see it! She was even more excited for the thank you Rufus would be sure to give her. She had a feeling it would involve their bed and no clothes. Either that or the couch and no clothes. Or the floor. When it came to being with Rufus, she wasn't picky whereas long as it was with him.

She smiled at the thought.

~Begin Again~

"Do you think your parents will like me? I'm kind of nervous," Veronica said as she curled a strand of her hair tightly around her right index finger. "I mean, what if they don't like me?" She released the hair, and looked up at Scott with panic stricken eyes.

Scott sighed, and gently stroked her hair, giving her a reassuring smile. "Sweetie, how could they not like you? You're beautiful, you're sweet, you're charming. What's not to like?"

Veronica smiled weakly. "Well, you know what they say—love is blind. I have so many flaws that you probably just overlook because you love me. What if they find me annoying, or not good enough for you?"

Scott raised an eyebrow. "Who says I love you?"

Veronica rolled her eyes at his teasing and smiled. "_You_ did!" She pulled him close and kissed his cheek. "You tell me every day."

Scott smiled. "Because I do love you. Every day you take my breath away."

"And you take mine away," Veronica said, gently stroking his cheek, then softly kissing his lips. She rested her head against his chest.

Scott gently rubbed her back. "As for your flaws, I hardly see any. Anyway, who doesn't have flaws? In fact, Lily is the most flawed woman I know. I love her, don't get me wrong, but she isn't exactly Mother Theresa. She meddles, she makes bad decisions, she's bitchy at times..."

Veronica looked up at him and smiled. "Is that anyway to talk about your mother? I mean, bitchy? Really?"

Scott shrugged. "I'm not saying she is a bitch. She just gets bitchy sometimes. There's a difference. She has good intentions. She just doesn't think before she acts a lot of times. She's very impulsive, and one to act in the moment. However, she's gotten better over the years. My father brings out the best in her. Now that they are back together, he'll bring even more good out in her. I'm sure of it!" He kissed the top of her head. "I love Lily, I really do. She is my birth mother and I love her more than I could ever imagine. I just wanted to make a point that your flaws are nothing compared to hers, so I wouldn't worry about them."

Veronica smiled yet again.

Scott felt his heart pound. Rufus had always told him that when Lily smiled it made his heart feel like it was going to explode. He had never known what Rufus had meant until now.

"Thank you," Veronica stated.

Scott raised an eyebrow. "For what?"

"For always knowing just the right thing to say to me to make me feel better." Veronica kissed his cheek, then held him tight.

Scott kissed the top of her head. "I'm just returning the favor. I can never be sad whenever I'm with you!"

Veronica grinned up at him. "Let's go get our bags then go meet your parents! I hope they don't mind me coming to their party."

"Are you kidding? They'll be thrilled I'm bringing you to meet them," Scott said as they headed toward baggage claim. "There's just one thing."

Veronica raised an eyebrow, and looked up at him as they walked. "What's that?"

Scott grinned. "Don't ever tell my mom I called her bitchy."

Veronica laughed. "No worries." She pretended to zip her lips with her fingers. "My lips are sealed."

Scott grinned, then kissed her beautiful sealed lips. He suddenly felt like the luckiest man on earth.

~BA~

"Scott! Oh, I'm so happy to see you!" Lily said as she pulled me close and kissed both my cheeks before embracing me, and holding me for a moment.

"It's good to see you too, Mom," I said, kissing her left cheek, then hugging her back. I still didn't know quite what to call her. Usually to her face I'd call her mom, but to other's I'd refer to her as Lily. I just didn't want people getting confused since I still considered my adoptive parents my mom and dad as well.

I then hugged Rufus, who pat my back.

"It's good to see you, Son," he said, also holding me close for a moment.

"It's good to see you too, Dad," I said. I felt lucky. Some kids didn't even have one full set of parents. I was one of the lucky few to have two sets of parents.

We broke the hug, and I smiled as I put my arm around Veronica. "Mom, Dad, I'd like you to meet Veronica. I hope it's all right that I brought her along to celebrate with us. I wanted you guys to meet her, and I figured this would be the perfect time to introduce her to the family."

"Mind? Of course I don't mind! In fact, I'm glad you did!" Lily said happily.

Rufus nodded. "Yes! I've been wanting to meet the girl that stole my son's heart!"

Veronica smiled, and stepped forward. "Hello Mr. and Mrs. Humphrey. It's so nice to finally meet you. Scott's said so much about you. He's always saying how lucky he is to have four parents who love him instead of just two." She extended her hand out to shake. She was so polite, which made me love her even more.

Rufus and Lily both laughed.

"So formal! You may call me Lily. Besides, I'm not a Humphrey yet!" Lily looked at my father and smiled. "Though I can hardly wait to be."

Rufus smiled back at her.

Lily then pulled my surprised girlfriend in for a hug instead of a handshake. "Thank you for making my son so happy. I love you already. You're a very beautiful and polite girl."

Veronica looked like she was going to cry, she was that touched. "Thank you, Lily. You're really beautiful, and already I can tell you're a really sweet woman!"

"Wait until you get to know her better," Rufus joked.

Lily gasped, and gently elbowed him. "You have to watch out for this one. He's an ass sometimes."

I couldn't help but laugh. Lily calling someone an ass was just to much! She was usually so prim, proper, and classy. It was just funny to hear her say ass.

"Thanks a _lot_!" Rufus said, shooting first Lily a look, then me one for laughing.

I shrugged, and grinned.

"Come here, you!" Rufus also pulled Veronica into a hug then. "I also want to thank you for making my son so happy. You seem like a really polite, sweet girl. You're good for him. I can tell already."

Veronica smiled, blushing a bit. "Thank you, Rufus. That really means a lot to me to hear you say that."

Rufus suddenly looked serious. "Lily said you could call her Lily. I never said you could call me Rufus. You can call me Mr. Humphrey."

Veronica's mouth dropped open for a split second. She blushed. "I'm sorry Mr. Humphrey. I—"

Rufus cut her off with his laughter. "I'm kidding! Of _course_ you can call me Rufus! I was just Joshing you!"

Veronica blushed even more. She then looked at Lily. "You weren't kidding! He _can_ be an ass!"

Between the look on Lily's face and the look on Rufus' face, not to mention my own shock at Veronica having come out of her shy shell and said that to Lily, it was all too much. I burst out laughing, and Lily soon followed. Soon, even my father was laughing. We were all laughing. It wasn't even that funny, but for some reason, we were laughing hard.

When I was finally able to stop laughing, I sighed contently. This was happiness. For a while, I hadn't been sure exactly what happiness was. Not long ago, I had suffered from manic depression. Not even Rufus and Lily knew about it. Only my adoptive parents knew. It was so bad I felt as if I'd never be happy. Heck, if I had had the guts back then, I might have even killed myself. However, now that I had Veronica in my life, and now that I was closer to my birth parents, I felt the happiest I've felt in a very long time. For once in my life, I had finally found the light at the end of the tunnel. I planned on keeping it that way if I could help it!

~BA~

The party was started. All the guests had arrived. Lily was up in her room getting ready. Rufus was mingling with the guests. Serena and Eric were talking to Veronica, and they were all laughing together. Things seemed to be going well for them much to Scott's great pleasure. He wished Jenny could have made it tonight, but she had some fashion show to attend. One of the dresses she had designed was being featured in the show. She promised to come visit in a few days. Scott just hoped he and Veronica were still there by the time Jenny got into town. He wanted his sister to meet Veronica.

Suddenly, the elevator doors opened, and there stood a delivery guy with a huge package. No one seemed to notice him, so Scott headed over to collect the package.

"Hi! I have a package for Miss Lily Rhodes," the delivery guy whose name tag read Stan said.

"I can sign for it. I'm her son," Scott replied. He kind of liked referring to himself as Lily's son. It felt good.

"All right!" Stan handed Scott his clipboard and a pen. "Sign here please."

Scott did as told.

"And here you go! Enjoy!" Stan said, sliding the package in to the room, then closing the elevator doors, and letting the elevator take him back downstairs.

Scott looked at the paper and saw that it was addressed to Rufus from Lily.

"What's that?" Rufus asked, suddenly coming up behind him.

"It's a present for you apparently," Scott said. He slid the package toward Rufus. "From Lily."

Rufus smiled. "Aw! It says Happy Engagement! This must be my engagement gift from her."

"Open it up! I'm eager to see what it is!" Scott ordered.

"I don't know. Shouldn't I wait for Lily?" Rufus asked.

Scott shrugged. "I guess. How long does it usually take her to get ready?"

Rufus looked at his watch. "She's been up there for ten minutes. We should see her down here in another ten minutes. She doesn't just dress and put her makeup on. She changes clothes like fifty times until she finds an outfit she is satisfied with. Sometimes that even requires taking all her makeup off and starting again."

Scott pouted. "I really don't feel like waiting that long. The suspense is killing me! That is a really big gift! I wanna see what it is!"

Rufus looked at Scott, then at the present, then back at Scott. He grinned. "I do too! I'll open it. As long as I still thank her profusely for whatever it is, she won't mind if I open it without her."

"Yes! Open it, open it!" Scott said.

So, Rufus began to open it, and Scott helped him.

Scott could hardly wait to see what it was! He bet it was something really special and memorable. He'd have to take notes, he figured. That way, he could learn how to be as romantic as his parents were and hopefully one day make as good of a spouse to Veronica as Lily and Rufus were to each other.

~Begin Again~

Lily finished her makeup, and was satisfied with her outfit after only two changes. She was finally ready to join her party. She slowly made her entrance down the stairwell. She was fashionably late to her own party, but in her opinion, that was the best way to make an entrance. Everyone would be waiting for her, and therefore be even more glad to see her than they would have been if she had already been there when they got there. Anticipation was everything.

As she made it to the bottom of the stairs, she wondered if the painting had arrived yet. Serena was supposed to be looking out for it.

She headed over to find Rufus, and saw a small crowd had gathered. Wondering what was going on, she pushed her way to the front of the crowd to see what was up.

Her heart pounded hard as she saw Rufus and Scott unwrapping the huge square package that she knew was forty-eight by fifty-six in dimension.

Her face paled. Most of the guests were watching! Oh no, no, no, no! It was _not_ supposed to happen this way! Serena was supposed to have collected the package when it was delivered then sneak it into the closet for the time being! Serena was now nowhere in sight, and Scott was helping Rufus open the package in front of everybody! She suddenly felt as if she were going to throw up. "Rufus, no!" She cried out.

Rufus looked up at her. "I'm sorry, Darling. I know I should have waited for you to open it up, but I got impatient. Scott and I were both eager to see what it is you got me! I hope you're not angry. You were so sweet and thoughtful to get me..." He paused to peal away the last section of paper, which would reveal Lily in almost all her glory.

"Rufus, no! Stop!" Lily cried out, her hand held out toward him. But it was too late. The last bit of paper fell to the floor, revealing Lily's half naked portrait to all the guests within eyeshot. Now almost everyone could see Lily half naked.

Rufus' mouth dropped open.

"Oh my gosh!" Scott gasped. He covered his eyes

A few of the guests started snickering.

Rufus looked up at Lily, shock in his eyes. "Lil, I'm sorry! I didn't know!"

"I told you to stop!" Lily cried. She was so humiliated.

Scott quickly grabbed a blanket from off the couch and threw it over the canvas, but you could still see from Lily's crotch down to her feet.

Lily heard more snickering. That was it. She couldn't stay at the party now. She had to get out of there. She ran back up the stairs, down the hall, and into her room. She then slammed her door shut, locked it, threw herself down onto her stomach on the bed, and began to sob. She would never get over the embarrassment of tonight. Never! So much for her grand entrance, and so much for her wonderful, memorable night. Well, it would be memorable all right, but not in the way she had had in mind!

She screamed into her pillow. Oh the humiliation! She couldn't imagine if any of the guests had cameras. Great! Now her half naked body would probably end up all over the Internet, and maybe even in the papers and tabloids! She was never going to live this one down, she knew. Never. In fact, right now she didn't even want to be seen in public ever again! She hoped Rufus didn't mind getting married in the bedroom, for as of now, that was exactly what was going to happen. She could never ever face the world outside again.


	7. Monster Mash

_**Begin Again Season Two**_

_**Episode 7: Monster Mash **_

"Lil, I'm sorry. Please let me in," Rufus said from the other side of the bedroom door. He knocked. "I've called the party off. Don't worry. People are leaving now."

Lily sniffled. "Go away, Rufus. I can't face you just yet. I'm not angry. You didn't know what it was. I'm just really embarrassed right now, okay?"

Rufus sighed.

Serena came up beside him. "She still won't let you in?"

"I'd be in there by now if she did," Rufus stated.

Serena knocked this time. "Mom, let us in. I'm really, really sorry! I was talking with Veronica, then I had to go to the bathroom. I didn't think the painting would be here yet. I thought I had time."

"Please, everyone just go away!" Lily cried. "I mean it. I simply cannot face anyone at the moment."

Serena and Rufus looked at each other and sighed.

"All right, Mom, we're heading back downstairs. If you need to talk, you know where we'll be," Serena said.

She and Rufus then headed down the stairs, where they met back up with Dan, Eric, Scott, and Veronica.

"No luck?" Eric asked.

Serena shook her head. "No. She's embarrassed, and refuses to see any of us."

"It's a good thing Chuck wasn't able to make it. That's one less person she has to worry about having seen the painting," Eric quipped.

"Do you mind if I try talking to her?" Veronica suddenly and quietly asked.

They all looked at her.

"I don't think she wants to see anyone right now," Serena told her.

Veronica shrugged. "She doesn't want to see any of you because you're family. Maybe she'll talk to me since I'm almost a stranger. I'm also a woman, so she can't be that embarrassed in front of a woman. It's the family members and men she's most embarrassed about seeing the painting I'm sure."

"It's worth a shot," Scott reasoned.

Rufus shrugged. "If you want to try, go right ahead. It's the last door on the left at the end of the hall." He motioned with his hand toward the stairs.

"I'll do my best!" Veronica said, heading up the stairs.

"She can do this. She majored in psychology in college. She's good when it comes to talking to people and listening," Scott revealed.

"I hope so," Rufus said with a sigh. "I want my own bed tonight. The couch is never fun to sleep on."

~Begin Again~

Veronica gently knocked on the door. "Lily? It's Veronica. May I please come in? I just want to talk. You have nothing to be embarrassed about. Trust me, I've seen people embarrass themselves a lot more than you just did. In fact, you weren't even the one to embarrass yourself. You did nothing wrong. You had a smoking hot portrait made for your husband, and other people saw it. It's nothing to be embarrassed or shamed about. In fact, you should be proud. Not everyone has a smoking hot body like you do, nor do they have your good looks!"

It was quiet on the other side of the door for a moment, then suddenly the door opened, and Lily peeked her tear-streaked face out. "You really think so?" she asked with a sniffle.

Veronica nodded. "Of course! Heck, I'm half your age, and I don't think I'd look as good as you do in that painting! Or even in person!"

Lily stepped back, and allowed Veronica in. However, as soon as Veronica was in the room, Lily shut and locked the door again.

"Take a seat," Lily said, nodding toward the bed. She then headed over and sat down on her side of the bed.

Veronica took what she assumed was Rufus' side of the bed, and faced Lily. "Honestly, I think all the men there were wishing they had a wife as hot as you, or at least that their wives would make them such a hot painting."

Lily bit her bottom lip. "People were laughing."

Veronica shrugged. "Well, you have to admit, the situation was funny. I'm pretty sure that's what everyone was laughing at—the situation; not the actual painting."

"Scott covered it pretty quickly at least," Lily reasoned.

Veronica winced. "Actually, once you were up the stairs, the blanket he used to cover it with fell, and everyone saw the full painting again. But look on the bright side—at least it wasn't a full on nude."

Lily picked up her pillow and pressed it against her face before crying out in frustration. She dropped the pillow. "Great! How embarrassing to have my son help open it, and then he and my other son saw it. I'm glad Jennifer wasn't here. Lord knows she'd have had something smart to say about it!"

"And Chuck wasn't here either, so that's also a good thing, right?" Veronica asked with a smile. She gently rubbed Lily's arm.

Lily smiled weakly. "Yes, that's good."

"Believe me, Lily, no one thought it was a bad painting. Though I can see why you'd be embarrassed. I'd be _mortified_ if it happened to me," Veronica began.

"You're not helping!" Lily said with a wince.

Veronica rolled her eyes and smiled. "You didn't let me finish. I was going to add, _but_ from the other person's point of view, it's not nearly as bad as you would think. I saw the looks on all of the men's faces. They were practically drooling! As for Rufus, he looked like he wanted to hump the portrait!"

Lily giggled. "Hump the portrait?" She raised an eyebrow.

Veronica laughed, and playfully pushed her. "Yes! It made me more uncomfortable to see the way he was looking at the portrait than the actual portrait itself! I felt like I was in some NC-17 movie."

Lily blushed. "So, no one looked disgusted?"

Veronica shook her head. "Are you kidding me? Far from it! You are smoking hot! There's no way in hell even a straight girl could be disgusted by that painting!"

Lily smiled big, this time very genuinely. "I think I'm finally ready to face everyone. Well, my family at least."

Veronica smiled. "Awesome! Scott and I are going to leave soon. I'm sure Serena, Dan, and Eric will too so that Rufus can show you how much he loved your gift to him." She winked and smiled at Lily.

Lily blushed and smiled in return. "Let's go."

So, Veronica got up off the bed, as did Lily, then Lily unlocked and opened the door, and they headed down the stairs to face the family.

~Begin Again~

Rufus was relieved to say the least as he saw his beautiful bride to be walking down the stairs.

"Lil, you came out of your room!" he said, rushing over to Lily, and taking her in his arms. "I'm so sorry I didn't wait to open it! I should have stopped right away when you told me no. I didn't understand why you were telling me no. Otherwise I would have stopped. Gosh, I'm such an idiot!"

Lily held him close in return. "You're not an idiot, Rufus. You were just excited to open your gift."

"I pushed him to open it. I was curious as to what it was. He wanted to wait, but I pushed and pushed, and I'm sorry," Scott said.

"And I should have made sure I was here for its delivery. I let you down, Mom, and I'm sorry," Serena chimed in.

Lily halfway released Rufus, but still kept an arm around him as she faced her children. "It's none of your faults. It was just one of those things. I don't want to talk about it anymore. All right? Can we just pretend that it never happened?"

Everyone nodded.

"Of course!" Serena agreed. She then turned to Veronica. "I don't know what you said to get her down here, but thank you."

Veronica shrugged. "t was no problem. I just told her the truth!" She smiled up at Lily, who smiled back at her.

"You picked a good woman, Son," Rufus said to Scott.

Scott smiled, and pulled Veronica close. "I know." He lovingly kissed Veronica on the lips.

Veronica kissed him back, looking so happy and in love. Rufus was really happy for them both.

They made small talk for just a moment more, then Serena hugged her mother and bid her ado, as did Dan, who hadn't said a word about the whole situation. Knowing his son, Rufus knew that he would discuss it in private with Serena later. Right now he was sure that Dan was more than likely as embarrassed as Lily was. Well, almost as embarrassed anyway.

After Dan and Serena left, Eric, Veronica, and Scott got ready to go as well.

"Do you all have a place to stay?" Lily asked with concern.

Eric nodded. "We're all staying at the Hilton. We made sure to get the same hotel so we can catch up, or in mine and Veronica's case, get to know each other better."

"Well, that will be nice," Lily said with a smile.

"And Mom, really don't even worry about the painting. The only reason I didn't like it is because my mother was in it. Let's face it, aint nobody want to see their mother half naked!" Eric said with a pat to his mother's arm before heading out.

Lily blushed. "And nobody wants their son seeing them half naked! Trust me, it wasn't exactly a picnic for me either."

Rufus grinned. He found his fiancé's embarrassment so incredibly cute.

After hugs, thank yous, and goodbyes, Eric, Scott and Veronica left, finally leaving Rufus alone with Lily.

Once the door was shut and locked, Rufus turned to Lily, and looked her in the eyes. "That is the best present anyone has ever given me."

Lily smiled. "You really like it?"

"Like it? I love it, Lil! You look so good in it! I'm sure I can get it for a couple grand at _least_ at the gallery!"

Lily's face suddenly paled, and her smile quickly faded. "You can't sell it, Rufus. It was meant for your eyes only! I know it's already been seen by plenty more eyes than yours, but even so, the thought of some stranger putting it up on their wall... I simply can't bear it!"

Rufus grinned. "I'm kidding, Lil. Do you think I'd let another man hang that picture of you up on their wall? Never! You're mine—all mine, and the only eyes that will be seeing that painting from now on will be mine and yours." He licked his lips. "We'll hang it in our bedroom. "I'll warn you though, the more I look at that, the less sleep you're going to get!"

Lily blushed. "So, you think I look sexy in it?"

"Ugh, Lil, that has gone _beyond_ sexy. That painting drives me insane! In fact, if you hadn't locked the door, I would have ravished you in our bedroom with a room full of people downstairs." Rufus was very serious. The painting drove him wild! When he had first seen it, he wanted to grab Lily and throw her down on the floor, taking her right then and there. Forget the upstairs! Though, in reality, he knew he'd have to act upon his desires in their bedroom if he didn't want to embarrass Lily even more or possibly even get them both arrested for indecent exposure.

"Serena said I should have done a nude, but I just couldn't! Thank God I didn't. I shudder to think of all those people seeing me completely nude!" Lily literally trembled.

Rufus pulled her closer to him, his eyes lowered with desire for her. "A nude would have been nice, I'm not going to lie. But I also love the lingerie. It's sexier and much classier. Plus, it leaves a little more to the imagination. Which of course means it makes me want to see more." He pushed the strap of her red dress off her shoulder, and kissed her now bare shoulder. "What makes it even nicer is I know for a fact that what my imagination sees is exactly what the reality is. Not only that, but being your fiancé means I can do everything to your body that I so deeply desire to do now." He slipped the other strap off her shoulder and began kissing that shoulder as well.

Lily shivered again, and this time Rufus knew it was for an entirely different reason. He knew she was aching for him just as much as he was aching for her.

"What do you so deeply desire to do to my body?" she asked in almost a whisper.

He moved his kisses to her neck. "Mm, I'd rather not say. It's something I'm much better at showing you." He picked her up.

Lily squealed. "Rufus! Where are you taking me?"

Rufus raised an eyebrow at her. "You really need to ask?"

Her eyes lowered with love and desire for him. "So you really liked the painting that much?"

"Even more than you think!" he told her.

Lily smiled big and sincere, and Rufus knew he had done his job of making her feel better. He then carried her up to the bedroom, for he was about to make her feel even better.

~Begin Again~

Just over two months had passed, and it was now Halloween. Scott had come back to New York with Veronica, for he was finally going to introduce her to Jenny. He had introduced her to Chuck before having gone back to Boston when he was down for the engagement party, but Jenny had been so busy, she hadn't ended up coming down to meet her after all. Now, Scott had begged and pleaded and finally convinced the whole family to get together for Halloween. They were going to have a party and dress up. Only family would be invited. He was glad they had all agreed instead of all going out to friends' parties like he knew most of them probably wanted to do.

This was important to him. He knew his adopted parents loved Veronica, and so far, it seemed his biological parents did as well. However, he wanted his semi-new family to really get to know Veronica. He wanted to really see how they all got along when having to spend the whole evening together. His reason was simple. He knew he had only been dating Veronica for just over half a year, but for him, that was enough. He planned on proposing to Veronica. His adoptive parents already knew. Since they were the ones to raise him, he figured they should be the ones to know first. Now, he wanted his biological parents and his newfound family to know. Veronica had no idea he was going to propose, but she would soon enough. He planned on proposing to her when they got back to Boston. He was going to take her to a nice restaurant along Boston Harbor. After, they would go for a walk by the water. Then, just like his father had proposed to Lily underneath the stars, he would get down on one knee and propose to her. He hoped she'd say yes. He was pretty sure she would. She seemed to love him as much as he loved her.

However, before all this could happen, he wanted to warn his family, and before that, see how they all interacted together. So, this Halloween meant something special to him. He just hoped it would turn out as he hoped. He planned on proposing to Veronica no matter what, but of course it would make him even happier if his family approved. He'd soon find out, he knew.

"So, how do I look?" Veronica asked, coming out of their hotel room's bathroom. "Do I look smokin' hot?" She grinned, then winked as she fluffed up her curly haired wig. She was Sandy Olsson from _Grease_ after Sandy had changed her image to the sexier version of herself.

Scott looked at Veronica in her blonde wig, skintight black leather pants, black stiletto heels, and off the shoulder black top, and licked his lips. "Maybe _you_ should do one of those paintings Lily did."

Veronica rolled her eyes, but smiled. "Don't be a pervert, Danny Zuko! Now go get changed. We're gonna be late!"

Scott grinned. "I'll be fast as Grease Lightnin'!" he promised before grabbing his costume and rushing into the bathroom with it.

"Yeah, I wouldn't recommend telling that one at the party!" Veronica quipped, though Scott could hear the hint of amusement in her voice from the other side of the door. He grinned. She loved his jokes and they both knew it! Still, he couldn't help but find it quite cute whenever she pretended to find his jokes unfunny. Oh, he could hardly wait to marry her! But first, Halloween night awaited.

~BA~

Veronica and I arrived at Lily and Rufus' place, where our party was being held. Rufus opened the door dressed as a giant waffle complete with a fake square of butter attached to the middle of the waffle.

Veronica covered her mouth and giggled. "Oh my gosh, that is so cute!"

Rufus grinned. "Thank you! Dan picked it out for me. He saw a couple's costume when he was at the costume shop shopping for his and Serena's costumes, and he knew he had to get me and Lily the costumes."

"What's Lily's costume?" I asked; curious.

"Why, Mrs. Butterworth of course!" Lily said with a smile and a wink at me and Veronica as she came up behind Rufus and placed a hand over his shoulder. Her costume was a flowing brown floor-length gown with long sleeves and a red apron that had the same design as a container of Mrs. Butterworth's syrup would have on it. On her head she wore a yellow cap that was a hat version of the cap to a bottle of Mrs. Butterworth's syrup.

"Oh my gosh, Mom, that is absolutely adorable!" I cooed.

"Do you want to see something really cute?" Lily walked way for a moment, then came back with Waffles the cat, who was dressed as a mini waffle. "I had it custom made!" she cooed.

I laughed. "That's crazy! Cute, but crazy."

"Aw! I think it's adorable! I love cats! Especially when they're dressed up. So cute!" Veronica cooed, leaning down to pet the cat's head.

Lily grinned big. "Me too!"

I smiled even brighter, and my heart warmed. So far, everything was working out just as I hoped. She was making Lily love her, just as I knew she would.

"Dinner will be done in two minutes! Everyone is waiting at the table," Rufus then announced. He grinned. "Making dinner in a waffle costume was not an easy task!"

"Then why didn't you wait to put the costume on until after you were finished?" I asked, an eyebrow raised.

Rufus shrugged. "I could have, but I didn't want to have to worry about changing after I finished cooking. I wanted to be able to just sit down and eat!"

"Fair enough, I guess," I said with a shrug. I headed to the table with Veronica, and everyone gave us a friendly greeting.

"I love the costumes!" Veronica said to everyone with a smile. Blair, Chuck, and Henry were dressed as Prince William, Kate, and George. Eric and Jenny were dressed as Chucky and Tiffany from _Child's Play_ (when Tiffany was still a doll), and Dan and Serena were dress as Ken and Barbie.

"You all are so creative! I think Veronica and I must have chosen one of the most unoriginal couple's costumes," I said as I pulled out Veronica's chair for her, then gently pushed her chair in once she sat.

"So what if they're common? I think you both look amazing! Veronica, you look great as a blonde!" Serena said with a smile.

Veronica smiled back. "Thanks!"

I turned to Jenny then. "Jenny, this my girlfriend Veronica." I turned to Veronica. "Veronica, this is my sister Jenny."

Jenny extended her hand out to Veronica, who shook it in return. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Veronica! I see my brother has good taste!" she said kindly.

I smiled, grateful for Jenny's kindness. I knew with Jenny, it was kind of a hit or miss when it came to how she would react to people.

"Thank you! I love your costume. You look hot even dressed as a doll!" Veronica said with a laugh.

Jenny laughed too. "Thank you! I do try."

They grinned at each other.

I was feeling better and better about having brought Veronica here for Halloween. Everything was working out perfectly, and I had absolutely no doubt that proposing to Veronica was what I wanted.

"Dinner is served!" Rufus said, entering the room with Lily just then.

They placed the main course on the table, which was four plates of burned and bloody looking hand-shaped meatloaf. Each plate held a hand. The fingernails were made of onions, and the texture of the meatloaf along with the ketchup is what made it look burned and bloody.

"Those are so cool!" I said with a laugh. "How did you make those?"

Rufus grinned. "I found pans shaped as hands. You'd be amazed at what you can find at costume shops. They're not just for costumes anymore!"

Lily had gone to the kitchen, and now returned with two plates of deviled eggs made to look like eyeballs. They had red lines down the white part of the eggs, and the yellow part was dyed green to resemble green eyes. A piece of black olive was in the center of all of them to make them look like pupils.

Veronica squealed in delight, and happily clapped her hands together. "You guys make the coolest things! I'm so happy I get to spend Halloween with you guys!"

Lily and Rufus both smiled.

"We're very happy you could join us!" Lily said.

"And that you approve of my cooking! I hope you still do after you've tried it." He winked at her.

"Oh, I'm sure I will!" Veronica assured him.

"I have one more dish before dessert!" Rufus said. He walked past me, and as he did so, he whispered in my ear, "She's a keeper!"

I smiled and nodded at him to show him I agreed. She was a keeper all right, and I could hardly wait to make her my wife.

~BA~

The next dish served was little hot dogs wrapped in crescent rolls to make them look like mummies. The crescents were wrapped over the top of the hot dog, and then again at the bottom, leaving just enough space for the "face" of the hot dog mummy to peer out. The faces were made from ketchup or mustard, giving some red eyes, and others yellow eyes.

The conversation started then, and Scott was pleased that Veronica seemed to be the star of the party. They all wanted to know more about what she did for a living. She was a kindergarten teacher. She had majored in psychology, but decided she wanted something else to fall back on as well. So, she had gone back to school and gotten her teaching degree. She had recently gotten a job as a kindergarten teacher, and she loved the job so much.

"I'd like to get a job in an office somewhere as a psychologist eventually, but for now, I love teaching. I love kids, and seeing my class' cute little faces every weekday brightens my morning. I teach at an all day Kindergarten, so I'm very happy with my job!" Veronica explained when Jenny asked her about her work.

"That's really great of you! Not everyone has the patience to be a teacher. I know _I_ don't," Jenny said.

"I'd pity the poor kids who got _you_ as their teacher," Eric joked to Jenny.

Jenny nodded. "I would too!"

They all laughed.

"So, is fashion designing fun?" Veronica asked.

Jenny's whole face lit up. "Yes! It feels like a dream every time I see a model wearing one of my designs. And when someone buys one of my designs, well... There's no feeling like it!"

"I bet!" Veronica agreed.

Scott watched and listened as his family all got along great with Veronica, and she got along great with them. He was beginning to think he didn't want to wait for Boston to propose to her. So, after Lily and Rufus had cleared the dishes, and after Rufus had come out with a graveyard cake (chocolate cake with vanilla frosting died green with Milano cookies stuck in it that had RIP carefully written on them in black icing to make them look like tomb stones, chocolate cookie crumbs sprinkled over the frosting to look like dirt, and chocolate covered mini pretzel sticks all around it to resemble a fence), Scott decided he would definitely like to propose to Veronica with his biological family surrounding them. He had the ring on him. He just had to pick the right time now.

As if it were fate, Rufus suddenly spoke up. "Hey guys, I know we planned to all just hang out around here, but I heard there's a costume party at the karaoke bar that just opened up. After dessert, what do you say we all go there and show off our costumes? Obviously I love to sing, and I know a lot of you do too. It could be fun! We can dance and sing to Halloween songs. Or is that too corny for you kids?"

Scott grinned. He loved those kind of things, and he knew that Veronica did too. Maybe he could find a cute and unique way to propose to her there if they went. It could be really fun! However, he knew that Lily tended to be uptight at times, and Jenny found a lot of things lame.

Jenny surprised him, however. She shrugged. "Could be fun. I bet it would be less lame than staying here. Besides, I want people to see me in my costume."

Eric nodded. "I'm down for it."

"Sure! It sounds like fun!" Serena agreed.

Dan nodded his agreement as well.

"I always love some good karaoke! Lincoln Hawk has a Halloween song out. I wonder if it will be in the karaoke book! I could blow everyone's mind with how much I sound like the original. Unless they know I am the original, in which case, they will probably ask for my autograph since I'm that cool!" Rufus joked.

Lily rolled her eyes and playfully pushed him, but a hint of a smile showed she secretly found his antics cute. "I suppose we can go. But don't expect me to sing! A singer I am not!"

"I hear you sing in the shower. I find it adorable," Rufus said, kissing her.

Lily kissed him as well. "Adorable doesn't make it good."

"To me it does," Rufus told her.

Lily smiled, and they kissed again.

"Well, I'm all for it, but we have Henry. I don't think a bar is any place to take a six-year-old," Blair said.

"Maybe your parents will watch him," Chuck suggested.

"I can see. I don't think they're doing anything other than passing out candy," Blair said. She quickly texted her mother to ask her.

They all had their dessert then, and before dessert was over, Blair's mother texted her back that she'd be more than happy to watch Henry for a couple of hours.

So, after dessert, Chuck and Blair left to take Henry to Blair's parent's place. They were then going to meet back up with them at the karaoke bar.

Scott could hardly wait to get to the bar. He wanted to propose tonight. He was sure of it. All he needed was the perfect moment.

"I just have to go to the bathroom, then I'll be right out, okay?" Veronica asked him. She kissed his cheek.

Scott pulled her close, and kissed her on the lips. "I'll be waiting."

She smiled at him, and kissed him on the lips in return, then headed for the bathroom once Rufus had told her where it was.

Scott sighed contently, and gently squeezed the ring that was in his pocket. He carried it with him every chance he went mainly because he had spent a small fortune on it, and didn't want to risk it getting stolen. Also, he was spontaneous and knew there might come a moment where he'd find to propose that he hadn't planned on. He had wanted to be prepared, and it was a good thing too, for the moment had come. Well, it was soon to come. And when he found that moment, he was going to propose to Veronica, then spend the rest of his life making her as happy as she made him.

~Begin Again~

They arrived at the club, and Jenny pulled Eric by the arm toward the costume contest sign up. She and Eric looked amazing. She knew they would. She had made their costumes herself. She wanted to prove to everyone that they had the best costumes, and that she was an amazing designer. She had her business cards ready in her purse in case anyone wanted to know where she and Eric had gotten their fabulous costumes that, in her opinion, looked better than the actual Chucky and Tiffany's!

Rufus and Lily signed up as well, then insisted everyone else in their group sign up too. Jenny didn't mind, for she was that confidant about hers and Eric's costumes.

"Let's go sing some karaoke!" Rufus said after signing up. "Who wants to sing with me?"

"Don't look at me! I told you I don't sing!" Lily said.

"I love watching and listening to people sing, but I can't sing a lick either," Veronica stated.

"I will!" Scott offered.

Jenny grinned. "Go for it! A father and son duet!"

Rufus and Scott quickly headed for the karaoke book, and then picked a song.

"What did you pick?" Jenny asked.

Rufus grinned at her. "You'll see." He winked.

A moment later, he and Scott got called on stage. They grabbed their mics, and the music began to play.

Jenny, Lily, Serena, and Veronica all laughed as the opening cords to Stevie Wonder's "Superstition" began to play. Then, Rufus began the song, and Scott joined in.

Everyone was dancing, clapping, and singing along. Jenny was impressed! She had known her father could sing of course, but she hadn't realized how good of a singer Scott was as well. She knew he must have inherited it from Rufus.

She cheered for them when they were done, as did practically the whole bar.

Rufus and Scott high-fived.

"If you ever want to join Lincoln Hawk, I'll have a talk with the guys," Rufus told Scott with a grin.

Scott laughed as they exited the stage. "Thanks! I'll keep that in mind."

Jenny took her turn next, singing Screamin' Jay Hawkins' "I Put a Spell On You," which the kids of today knew better from the old movie _Hocus Pocus_. She did amazing, and she knew it. The applause said it all. She bowed when she was done, then flashed her tongue, and the rocker sign, and jumped off the stage to more applause.

Serena and Dan went next singing Michael Jackson's "Thriller." Dan was better than Serena, but Serena wasn't terrible. They had fun, and the audience didn't care about a pitch problem here or there. They got their fair share of applause.

"Come on, Guys! You have to sing! Who cares if you can't sing that well? Most people at karaoke bars can't sing. That's why it's karaoke. It's just for fun whether you can sing out not. Please? For me?" Scott pleaded with Veronica, Lily, and Eric.

Veronica shrugged. "I will if someone else does it with me."

Eric smiled. "I'll sing with you."

"You sing too, Lil." Rufus kissed her cheek. "Pretty please?"

"Oh, what the heck? I suppose I could if they are." She nodded toward Veronica and Eric.

"Yes!" Scott said; excited.

Jenny grinned. This she had to see.

"Let's go pick our song out then," Eric said with a sigh.

The three of them headed to the song book, and five minutes later, they were all on stage singing a bad, but not quite as bad as Jenny had hoped it would be, version of Ray Parker Jr.'s "Ghostbusters." They even had the crowd (Jenny and the others included) shouting out "Ghostbusters!" with them, and pounding their fists in the air. It was incredibly cheesy, but it felt good to be with family, so Jenny chose to ignore the cheese for the night.

The applause seemed louder for those three than the rest of them, despite their obvious lack of singing talent.

"You didn't sing so bad! You're better than you think! Come sing "Summer Nights" from _Grease_ with me. Who knows? Maybe it will increase our chances of winning," Scott then said to Veronica with a smile and a wink.

Veronica giggled, seemingly on a high from her first performance.

So, they signed up and sang, and they didn't do half bad! Scott was right, Jenny realized. Veronica was a better singer than she gave herself credit for. Though, she wasn't the best, she was still better than Lily and Eric.

The audience seemed to agree as well.

Chuck and Blair arrived then, and after Lily made them sign up for the costume contest, Serena made them take a turn at singing. So, they signed up to sing Bobby "Boris" Pickett's "Monster Mash," and didn't do that bad of a job at singing it.

To this day, Jenny and Blair weren't each other's biggest fans, so Jenny hated to admit that Blair was good, but just this one time, she had to admit Blair was good. Just not to her face of course. She'd rather shave her head.

The audience loved Chuck and Blair's performance.

After the karaoke, they all danced to some music. It was all Halloween themed music, so some of it was corny, and some of it was good. They all had a blast. Jenny even danced with Veronica at one point. They joked with each other, laughed, and danced like no one was watching. They danced with crazy moves, not caring who might be watching them and thinking they looked stupid.

Scott and Veronica danced together as well of course, and Jenny couldn't help but notice just how perfect they looked together. She smiled. She hoped she found that one day. She had never really been in love, and she longed to know what it felt like to love and to be loved in return.

~BA~

I pulled Scott to the side as we were waiting for the costume contest winner announcement.

"What's up?" he asked with a smile.

"You're really happy with Veronica, aren't you?" I asked him.

Scott grinned brightly and nodded. "I'm going to propose to her tonight. I'm just waiting for the right moment," he announced.

I was surprised, but at the same time, super excited for him! Scott! Oh my gosh! I'm so happy for you!" I exclaimed.

"Sh!" Scott quietly warned, a finger to his lips. He looked to his right where Veronica stood only three feet away talking with Lily. He turned back to me, his voice lowered. "I don't want her to know until I'm ready to propose."

"Sorry!" I lowered my voice. "So, when are you going to propose to her?"

"Well, I don't want to lead into it. I want it to be something like, we're talking then I bring it up casually into the conversation. I don't want her to see it coming!" Scott replied. "Do you think she'd like that?"

I nodded. "I think surprise proposals are the best kind! After all, what fun is it if they already know it's coming?" I asked.

Scott nodded. "Exactly!"

"All right, Everyone! The winners of the costume contest are about to be announced! the MC said.

Everyone grew quiet as the MC spoke. "The third place winner, and winner of a twenty-five dollar gift card to Macy's is...Scott and Veronica as Grease's very own Danny Zuko and Sandy Olsson!"

I cheered and clapped as my brother and a smiling Veronica headed up to claim their prize.

"Thank you!" Veronica said, a cheery smile on her face as she took the offered card from the MC.

"You may have the whole gift card to buy yourself something nice," Scott said to Veronica, giving her a kiss on the cheek.

Veronica smiled. "I don't know how nice it can be for only twenty-five bucks, but I'll take it!" She kissed him in return.

"Second place goes to, Eric and Jenny as Chucky and Tiffany, from _Child's Play_!" the MC announced next. "Congratulations! Come claim your fifty-dollar gift card!"

Eric and I grinned, then headed to claim our fifty-dollar Macy's gift card.

"Thank you!" I said as I took the card from the MC. "I designed these myself!" I said it loudly so that everyone would know.

"Cool," the MC said, sounding unimpressed.

I rolled my eyes. "What did I expect from a bar, really? I should have known.

"And the first place winner of a hundred-dollar gift card to Macy's is... Lily and Rufus as Mrs. Butterworth and her waffle!"

Lily grinned. "Yay!" She grabbed Rufus' hand. "Come here, my Waffle!"

I cheered for my father and Lily, but I was still a little annoyed that a giant waffle and a life-sized bottle of syrup had beat out my Chucky and Tiffany costumes. But, like I said, what did I expect from a bar? Especially one that gave our Macy's gift cards.

Rufus took the card and held it up for all to see, smiling as if he were holding up the winning lottery ticket. I rolled my eyes. He could be so embarrassing sometimes.

The MC then announced the scheduled band, who came onto the stage dressed as Devo. They called themselves Devolish, They were corny as hell and I was ready to leave. We all were, but Veronica wanted to stay for one song.

"Oo, they're playing 'Whip It!' I love this song! Can we just stay for this one song? Please?" she asked, latching onto Scott's arm, and looking up at him with puppy dog eyes.

Scott smiled. "All right. I can never deny you anything."

Veronica kissed him, then they began to dance.

We all did, for we didn't want to be rude, and leave without them.

I blushed as I saw my dad and Lily dancing like morons. Rufus was doing the twist, and Lily was tilting her head to the side, pretending like she was pouring syrup on him. Veronica was laughing, apparently finding them hilarious. I on the other hand would firmly deny knowing either of them if anyone asked.

At one point, Veronica stood up on a chair, and shook so vigorously to the music that I thought for sure her wig would fall off. It stayed in place though. She shook her arms above her head and sang the lyrics loudly and off key. If it were anyone else, I would have thought she was a real loser. But when Veronica did it, it somehow seemed cool. I actually found myself standing and dancing on a chair beside hers and singing right along with her, only on better key of course.

When the song was over, we hugged while still standing on our chairs. "You rock!" I told her.

"No, _you_ rock!" she said to me.

We grinned at each other. I saw Scott looking at us proudly. I knew he was happy to see her and I getting along so well. I just wondered when he was going to propose to her. He better do it soon, I knew, for we were all about to leave.

~BA~

They were all in good spirits, and talking about their costume wins as they exited the bar.

"We're lucky three couples from our group won instead of some strangers. I saw the list. A lot of people entered!" Eric said.

"You can never go wrong with waffles and syrup!" Rufus said, patting his waffle stomach, and licking his lips.

Jenny rolled her eyes. "My costumes were way cooler."

"We won second place, so we can't complain! Rufus and Mom won because theirs is unique," Eric reasoned.

"Whatever," Jenny said. She didn't mean to be a bitch, but she tended to get very competitive when it came to her designs.

They made small talk a little more, then they exchanged their goodbyes.

"We can share a cab," Jenny said to Scott, Veronica, and Eric, for they were all sharing a cab.

Scott, Veronica, and Eric all agreed. A cab was already waiting, so Eric asked if the driver could give them a ride to their hotel, and the driver said he could. Eric then opened the door for Jenny.

"Thank you!" Jenny said.

"I'll go around the other way," Veronica stated.

Jenny looked to Scott, who held a finger up to her, as if to tell Jenny to wait before she got in.

Jenny smiled, knowing Scott must be planning his proposal now.

Veronica was in the middle of the street, ready to turn right so that she could get in on the other side of the cab. However, Scott stopped her.

"Veronica, wait!" he called out.

Veronica stopped. "What, Zuko?" She had a smile on her face.

Scott smiled as well, and reached into his pocket for the ring.

All of the sudden, a loud screeching sound was heard.

Jenny looked toward the sound of the screeching, and her face paled. A blue convertible was flying toward Veronica without any sign of stopping, or even slowing down.

"Veronica, look out!" Jenny screamed.

Veronica looked, but it was too late. The convertible hit her hard, and didn't stop.

She smacked into the car hard, and hit the windshield before being catapulted off the car and onto the street a few feet away.

Lily, Serena, and Blair all screamed.

Chuck ran out toward the street with Rufus and Eric.

"Veronica!" Scott screamed. "Veronica!"

Dan held Scott back, clearly not wanting him to see what was a gruesome scene.

Jenny stood there, her mouth dropped open in complete and total shock. She couldn't move our speak. All she could hear was Scott screaming Veronica's name over and over, and screams from onlookers somewhere in the mix. She couldn't think, and she couldn't feel. All she could do was stand there and stare in total shock at Veronica's limp and lifeless body lying in the middle of the street.


	8. One Way or Another

_**Begin Again Season Two**_

_**Chapter 8: One Way or Another**_

"Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. May she be at peace now with her Lord and Savior." The pastor, spread dirt over Veronica's closed coffin, ending the funeral. The first part of the funeral had been at the Baptist church Veronica attended every Sunday. She had even gone to Bible study every Wednesday night. She was a good and genuine person both spiritually and mentally. She had a lot of people that loved her. Her best friend sang at her funeral, as did a couple of her other friends. Another friend read Veronica's favorite passage of scripture, while another friend read her favorite poem. Since Veronica had a ton of people that loved her, the church had been packed. Now, as she was laid to rest in the cemetery next to where her parents would be laid to rest when they passed on, the cemetery was filled with cries of sorrow and despair, all from Victoria's friends and family who were clearly deeply mourning her.

Everyone took turns placing long-stemmed thornless red roses over Victoria's casket. They were her favorite, according to her mother.

Rufus certainly never considered himself a cryer, but he felt a tear slide down his cheek as he placed his rose over the casket. She had been so young and full of life! She was only twenty-five. She had her whole life ahead of her. Or so they had all thought. She was such a good person. Rufus had to wonder why God allowed for bad things to happen to good people.

Lily broke into an audible sob as she placed her own rose over the casket.

Rufus pulled her close, and gently rubbed her back.

"Goodbye, Sweet girl," Lily whispered as she placed her hand over the side of casket. Thank you for making my son happy, even though you didn't get very long to do so. I know you would have been a beautiful, sweet, and perfect wife for him." She sobbed again louder.

Rufus let her bury her face in his chest. Neither he nor Lily had known Veronica for very long at all, but Veronica had still managed to win their hearts over. He had already been considering Veronica to be another daughter, and he was sure that Lily had too.

Rufus watched as Serena and Dan placed their roses over the casket, followed by Chuck, Blair, and little Henry. Every one of them had tears in their eyes—even Henry who had only met Veronica once very briefly.

Finally, Scott headed over in between Eric and Jenny, who had their arms around him on each side. Scott looked more sad and depressed than Rufus had ever seen him look. He wasn't crying though. He didn't even have a tear in his eyes.

Rufus was starting to get a little worried for his son. Since Veronica's death, Scott had yet to shed one tear. In fact, after he had stopped screaming Veronica's name over and over when she had been hit, he had pretty much stopped talking all together. The whole family had tried to get him to talk—his adoptive parents included—but all he would do is grunt, shrug, offer a yes or nor, or what was usually the case, just mumbled that he didn't want to talk about it. No one pushed him to talk, for they knew it was important to let him wait for his own timing. He had been through something very traumatic, and nobody wanted to make it worse by forcing him to talk before he was ready to.

Jenny and Eric set their roses on the casket. Jenny sniffled, and Eric looked as if his best friend had died even though he hadn't known Veronica for very long either.

Scott placed his rose on the casket after they did, then he just stood there staring down at Veronica's casket for the longest time. Finally, he turned around and headed over to a bench, then sat down on it and buried his face in his hands.

Veronica's parents came up to the casket then, and placed their roses over the casket.

Veronica's mother let out a long, mournful wail. "My Daughter! My Baby! This can't be happening!" She then started sobbing hysterically over the casket, gripping it for dear life.

Veronica's father was in tears. The tears were streaming down his cheeks like rivers. He placed a hand over his wife's back, then pulled her close to him.

"No! I can't leave my baby!" Veronica's mother cried. Even so, she let her husband gently lead her to the car. It wasn't good for her to see them lower the casket, and her husband knew it.

"Nobody should ever have to bury their children. Nobody!" Lily whispered. She sniffled. "I don't think I could survive if I lost one of our children."

"Hopefully, we'll never have to go through that," Rufus said, gently rubbing her back, and still holding her close. He kissed the top of her head. The truth was, he didn't think he could survive that either. Losing a child to death would be like losing a part of his soul. He knew how Veronica's parents must feel, but at the same time, he couldn't imagine the actual pain. If he lost one of his children or Lily...his sweet Lily, he couldn't live! He'd not have any reason left to live. He held Lily tighter, and kissed the top of her head again. From now on, there wouldn't be a day that went by that he would take them for granted. He would cherish them for the rest of his life. He only wished Scott had the chance to have cherished Veronica for the rest of _his_ life. Though, looking at Scott who was sitting in between Eric and Jenny, immune to their comforting, he knew that even with Veronica's passing, Scott would still cherish the memory of her that was sure to forever live on.

~Begin Again~

"Scott, are you all right?" Jenny asked, gently rubbing Scott's back.

Scott just shrugged. If he had a dime for every time someone had asked him that in the past three days, he'd be rich! He knew they all meant well, but it was getting quite annoying. His would-have-been fiancé had just been killed. Of _course_ he wasn't all right! He was sick to his stomach as the events of that night played over and over in his head!

He saw her beautiful smile as she playfully called him Zuko. She hadn't even seen the car rushing toward her until it was too late. It had hit her so hard, and she had flown so far! He had heard the sickening sound of her body hitting the pavement. She had hit _that_ hard! He saw the dead, lifeless look in her eyes. Her wig had flown off somewhere. So much for it staying on her head. Earlier, he had been thinking how well the wig stayed through the night. Now, it had finally fallen off. Who knew that her being hit by a car is what would finally make it fall off? He knew those were crazy thoughts to be thinking. After all, what difference did it make anymore? But crazy thought were better than thinking about his girlfriend's impending death. His family had tried to hold him back, but he had had to see her. He had sat by her body, lovingly stroking her hair, telling her over and over that she was going to be okay. That everything was going to be okay. He wasn't even sure if she could hear him. She was breathing, but barely. The life was already gone from her eyes. Deep down, he knew she was as good as dead. He didn't want to scare her though, and he didn't want to admit it to himself.

Five minutes later, the ambulance got there. It was too late though. She was pronounced dead before they even got her in the ambulance.

"Well, we're here if you need to talk. All right?" Eric asked.

Scott nodded, still not saying a word. These days, he didn't have much to say. He figured, talking wasn't going to bring Veronica back, so why bother?

Veronica's parents had been so nice. They had hugged him in a group hug at the church and told him how much Veronica had loved him.

He had hugged them back, and whispered that he had loved her too. He felt numb. He didn't want to talk about Veronica with anybody, let alone them. He just couldn't take their sadness when he had more than enough of his own sadness to deal with. He felt like death,

Both sets of parents came over to him then.

"Scott, don't worry. Your mother and I have decided to cancel our cruise. You need us right now. We're not going to leave you," Scott's adoptive father told him.

Scott looked up at them, and shook his head. "No. Mom has been looking forward to that trip for months! I want you two to go. Don't worry about me. Staying here won't bring her back."

"I know it won't, but you still need your parents! Don't worry about me. There will be other trips," Scott's adoptive mother said.

Again, Scott shook his head. "You saved for _years_ to be able to go on this trip! The tickets are nonrefundable at this point. You have to go."

"We don't care about the money, Son. You're more important. Anyway, they might make an exception when we tell them about the death in the family," Scott's adoptive father said, an arm around his wife.

Scott shook his head yet again. "Veronica wasn't family yet, Dad. They're not going to care that your son's girlfriend died. They'll feel bad maybe, but not enough to give out a refund. I read the tickets and they clearly state that they are non refundable thirty-days after purchase. It's been three times that length of time. You're going!" His parents had saved to go on a month long cruise around Europe. His mother had been _so_ excited, and he knew his father was too even though his father never showed as much emotion as his mother did. There was no way Scott was going to make them suffer too.

"Maybe we can go for just a little bit, then fly home early from one of the ports," Scott's father suggested.

"Don't you dare!" Scott warned. "You're going to go for the full month, and you're going to have a blast."

"Well, I won't be able to relax knowing you're all alone in Boston!" his mother insisted. She sniffled. "I won't leave you alone. I just won't!"

"He can stay with us!" Rufus quickly chimed in.

Lily nodded. "Yes! This will be the perfect opportunity to spend some much needed and overdue time with our son."

Scott's adoptive parents looked at each other wearily. Scott knew they still didn't like the thought of him having two sets of parents—even after all these years.

"I don't know..." Scott's adoptive mother trailed off.

"Go on your cruise. I'll go to New York and be with Rufus and Lily. I want to. I have to testify anyway, so I might as well stay for a while. Anyway, I'm not going to feel better knowing that you two missed out on your cruise because of me. Trust me, it will only make things worse. I want to spend time with my birth parents." Scott said. He didn't want to spend time with either set of parents in truth. He wanted to be left alone. However, if staying with Rufus and Lily meant his adoptive parents could still have their trip, then so be it. He would go to New York and live with his adoptive parents. Besides, there was something else he had to do while in New York.

Scott's adoptive parents looked at each other, still looking unsure.

Scott's adoptive father then looked at Scott. "Well, if it's all right with Rufus and Lily, and you really want to, then fine. You may stay with them."

_I'm an adult! I don't need your permission_, Scott thought to himself, though he knew better than to say that to his father. His father was only trying to help.

"It's more than okay with us!" Lily said.

Rufus nodded.

Scott's adoptive mother finally caved. She slowly nodded her head as well. "All right then, if that's what you want, Scott."

Scott nodded. "It is."

Scott's adoptive mother turned her attention to Rufus and Lily. "Thank you for agreeing to take him in."

"Of course!" Lily said. "He's our son too."

Scott could tell by the look on his adoptive mother's face that she wasn't happy about Lily's little reminder. Even so, she kept her mouth shut.

"We'll stop by your place tonight. Maybe we can do dinner before your father and I leave tomorrow," his adoptive mother said to him then.

"Sure, Mom," Scott agreed, hugging his mother, and then his father. He really didn't feel like eating. In fact, the way he felt now, he'd be perfectly happy never eating again! He would though, for he didn't want to disappoint his parents. His adoptive parents then left.

"Are you ready to go?" Serena asked, coming over and placing an arm around Scott then. "Dan has the car waiting."

Scott nodded. "Let's go." He gave Veronica's casket one last look, then left with Serena. She had insisted on her and Dan giving him a ride. Scott had allowed her. He knew that was how Serena felt she could best help. He also knew she'd be making him eat lunch when they got back to his place. At least now he had going out to dinner with his parents later and not wanting to spoil his appetite as an excuse.

~Begin Again~

"I'm so glad Scott will be returning to Boston with us and spending some time with us! I just wish it were under better circumstances," Lily said at dinner that night. Scott was off to dinner with his adoptive parents, spending time just the three of them before his parents left on their cruise the next morning. Lily, Rufus, and the kids had chosen to eat at the hotel's restaurant.

"I'm worried about him. He hasn't shown any kind of emotion whatsoever since Veronica's death. He's just sort of clammed up, and doesn't say much more than he has to. I'm surprised he even said as much as he did when it came to making sure his parents went on that cruise," Serena stated.

He cares about his adoptive mother and father. He didn't want to ruin their trip because of him. He's good like that," Lily stated.

"Well, he really needs all of us to be there for him now. We need to be there for him as much as we can over the month he's going to be staying in New York," Eric said.

"We also don't want to push him. I know it's not exactly the same thing, but when I lost my father—the first time—I was mad at the world. I didn't want people constantly asking how I was doing, and I certainly didn't want people to try to force me into showing the kind of emotion they preferred me to show. Nor did I want anyone trying to cheer me up or force me to be happy. I needed to deal with it my own way and in my own time," Chuck stated.

"Still, he needs to know that we're all here for him," Blair reasoned.

"I can draw him a picture," Henry chimed in.

Blair smiled at her son, and gently stroked his hair. "I'm sure he'd like that, Sweetie. You do that."

"I think that he should have more than just you guys at the apartment. I think he'd feel more comfortable and more willing to open up if he has a sibling around. I could move in too," Jenny offered.

Lily nodded. "If you'd like. But what about your job?"

Jenny shrugged. "I can design and sew just as easily at your apartment as I can in my own apartment in Hudson."

"But what about all your shows in Hudson and the surrounding area?" Rufus asked. "It's not that I wouldn't love to have you home again for a bit, but for a whole month? Can you really take all that time off?"

"Well, we could split the time up. I could move back home for a couple weeks. I'd love to spend time with Scott, and live back home again for a while. My boss is super nice. He already told me I can take a couple weeks off if I'd like," Eric offered. He worked as a secretary at a law firm. People liked to tease him about being a secretary, but he was being paid quite handsomely, and had really good hours, so he took the teasing in jest.

"Whatever works best for you two. I'll just happy to have either of you back home," Lily said.

Rufus nodded his agreement. "What she said."

"Well, Eric you can take the first two weeks, then we'll switch off. It will give me time to get my affairs in order," Jenny said.

Lily smiled. "You've grown so much in the last five years, Jennifer. I'm proud of you. You've really matured."

Jenny shot Lily a look. "Because I was just _so_ immature, right?" she asked, an eyebrow raised and her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Lily shook her head. "I didn't mean it that way, Jennifer. We've all changed so much in these past five years. Myself included."

Jenny smirked. "I hope you've changed because I didn't like you very much before. Actually, you were kind of a bitch."

Lily blushed.

"Jennifer, apologize to Lily this instant!" Rufus snapped.

Jenny rolled her eyes. "It was a _joke_, Dad. Lighten up! Anyways, I said _before_."

"Jennifer..." Rufus warned.

Lily smiled weakly. "It's okay, Rufus, Darling. I can take a joke." She smiled at Jenny, who shot her a forced smile in return. Lily had a feeling it wasn't really a joke, but if she had to prove to Jenny that she wasn't the same woman she used to be, and that she was through breaking Rufus' heart, then she would prove it to her. Maybe Jenny living with them would be a good thing. This way, Jenny could see firsthand how much Lily loved Rufus. It was either that or she and Jenny would end up wanting to kill each other!

Lily glanced over at Jenny, who was now looking over her menu. Jenny seemed to sense that Lily was staring at her.

Jenny looked up, and stared blankly at Lily.

Lily quickly looked away. She'd hope for option one, but sadly it was starting to look like it was going to be option two.

Lily sighed. _Here we go again_, she thought. _How fun_. She'd put up with it for Scott's sake though. After all, she'd do anything for her son. Even if it meant putting up with a snotty stepdaughter who not so secretly hated her.

~Begin Again~

"So, here we are. You may pick whatever room you'd like. You can stay in mine with me if you'd like," Eric said to Scott as they entered Rufus and Lily's apartment.

"Thanks, but I think I'd rather have a room to myself," Scott said.

"You can take my bedroom then. I'll take Serena's old room," Eric said kindly.

Scott shook his head. "Show me to Serena's old room. I'm not going to take your room from you."

"Well, technically is hasn't been my room in a good six or seven years, but all right. I really wouldn't mind if you'd rather have that room though," Eric said.

"Serena's room is fine," Scott said.

"Suit yourself!" Eric replied with a shrug.

"Scott, Darling, would you like any lunch?" Lily asked. "We could go out, or Rufus could cook you up something."

Rufus nodded. "I make a really good chili!" he bragged.

Scott smiled weakly. "I'm not very hungry right now, but thank you. Maybe tonight you can make chili for dinner?"

Rufus nodded. "Of course!"

Eric gave his parents a pained look. He knew they were just as worried about Scott as he was. He then led Scott up the stairs, and toward Serena's old bedroom.

"This is it! Aside from changing the sheets, Mom kept it exactly the way it was when Serena moved out. You don't have to worry about boy band posters or calendars of half naked men. That wasn't Serena's style. Sadly though, you will have to deal with boring white on white." Eric motioned with his hand around the room. The walls, the bed, the bedding, the night stand, and the dressers were all white.

"The only ounce of color that was ever in this room was Serena's clothes in her closet, and the TV when she had it on," Eric said with a smile.

Scott grinned. "It's cool."

Eric was happy to see Scott grin. "We do have Chuck's old room as well, but that's even worse. It's brown and green, and Lily now uses it for an extended closet. I think she chose that room because it's the biggest room in the apartment. Yes, our mother has a ton of clothes. Women! Right?"

Scott suddenly looked sad again. "Veronica had a great sense of style. Boots were her thing. She loved her boots. Sunglasses too. She'd wear them even at night sometimes. I'd ask her why she was wearing sun glasses when there was so sun out. I'd tease her, asking her if she thinks she's too cool for me. She'd always say that she loved her sun glasses too much to just wear them during the day. Then she'd pulled me close and hug me tight. She'd kiss my cheek and stroke my hair and tell me she sometimes felt _I_ was too cool for _her_. I'd kiss her in return and say I'm the one who felt unworthy of her. She'd kiss me again, and tell me that we're both lucky. I'd agree, and we'd smile, and..." Scott sniffled. "We'd both be so happy. Now, neither one of us is lucky because she's dead, and I'm stuck on this earth without her."

Eric walked over to Scott, and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Remember, I'm here if you ever need to talk."

Scott looked him in the eyes, his eyes looking almost as lifeless as Veronica's had looked. "Talking's not going to bring her back, Eric. Now, if you'll please excuse me, I just want to be alone for a while."

Eric nodded. "Okay." He hugged Scott tightly. "Just know that I'm here for you whether you think you need me or not. I'm your brother, and I love you. We all love you, and we're going to help you through this."

Scott hugged Eric back. "I love you too," he said, though his voice was still filled with sadness. He released Eric, then walked over to the bed, and lay face down on the bed.

"I'll come up and get you at dinnertime. Rufus really does make good chili," Eric said at the doorway.

Scott didn't reply.

Eric left the room then, and gently closed the door behind him. He sighed, then headed down the hallway.

~BA~

"How is he?" my mom asked with concerned as I got to the bottom of the stairs. I walked over to her and Rufus, who had been sitting on the couch.

I sat down to Rufus' left. "He's a mess. He is heartbroken over losing Veronica. I told him how you use Chuck's old room as a closet now, and he told me about Veronica loving boots and sun glasses, and how she'd wear her sun glasses at night because she loved them to much to just wear them during the day. He was so sad, Mom! You should have seen the dead look in his eyes, and the distance in his voice as he told me about it. It's absolutely heartbreaking!"

Lily had tears in her eyes. "I hate so see him in such pain! I have to go talk to him." She started to get up off the couch, but Rufus gently took her arm, and pulled her back down.

"I'm sure he wants to be alone right now," Rufus said gently.

I nodded. "He does. I told him I'd come up and get him at dinnertime, and that Rufus' chili is really good, but he didn't say anything. He's just lying on the bed, face down. It's kind of scary, seeing him so down. I mean, I know he's obviously going to be very upset, but... I don't know. It just scares me is all," I confessed.

"Everybody grieves differently. Scott's handling this in his own way. His girlfriend whom he was going to propose to got hit by a car and died. He saw it happening. This isn't going to leave his mind overnight. I'm sure it never will. We just need to give him time, and he will start to pen up when he's ready. All we can do now is let him know we're here for him when he needs us," Rufus explained.

I shrugged. "I told him I was, and I told him I loved him. He said he loved me too, but that was it. He threw himself down onto the bed then."

"Just give him time. He'll come around," Rufus assured me.

"I think he should talk to a psychiatrist. He needs to get therapy. Who knows what seeing his could-have-been fiancé dying has done to him?" Lily said.

I shook my head. "Well, if he doesn't want to talk to any of us, I highly doubt he wants to talk to a stranger. I say we give him time before taking him to someone. I can almost guarantee now he would never go for it."

Lily sighed. "I just want to help my son get through this! I feel so powerless."

"Don't we all," I said as more of a statement than a question. "Don't we all?"

~BA~

Eric knew exactly what Lily meant by feeling powerless. He felt so powerless too. His brother was hurting, and there wasn't a thing he could do about it. Being there for Scott when Scott needed him just didn't seem like enough. He got up off the couch, and paced the living room. He didn't know what he could do for Scott besides being there for him though! Aside from bringing Veronica back, which he clearly couldn't, he was, as Lily said, powerless.

He headed up the stairs to his own room. He guessed all he could do now was watch TV to try to keep his mind off of Scott. He had a feeling it wasn't going to be easy.

~Begin Again~

Scott sat up in his room, dug into his backpack, and took out the newspaper article he had saved. He pulled it out, and read it over for what was probably the hundredth time.

_Son of attorney Robert Freeman, Travis Freeman, twenty-nine, has been charged for drag racing and accidentally killing twenty-five-year-old Veronica Desmond outside of the new karaoke bar, Just Sing then fleeing from the scene. Freeman was drag racing with a friend when his car hit Miss Desmond. Miss Desmond smashed against the car, then flew four feet before hitting the pavement. Freeman kept on driving, but police were able to find him from his license plate number that and onlooker had taken down. Toxicology reposts say that Freeman was not over the drinking limit when driving. Charges against Freeman are illegal drag racing, reckless endangerment, manslaughter, and hit and run. Freeman's bail was set at fifty-thousand dollars. He is currently out on bail and awaiting his trial, which is a closed trial set to take place on the eighth of November._

Scott could hardly wait for the trial. It was going to be painful to go through, yes. However, he needed to testify not only because he was a witness, but also because he wanted to help put the scumbag who killed his girlfriend away for a very long time. Travis should be the one who died—not Veronica. Now it was time for him to help make sure that Travis _wished_ he had been the one to die instead of Veronica.

~BA~

I put the newspaper article back in my backpack, then headed over to Eric's room. I wanted to talk about the trial with him.

I gently knocked on the door.

"Come in!" Eric called out.

I came in to Eric's room. "Hey. Can we talk for a minute?" I asked.

Eric looked surprised to see me, but glad at the same time. "Of course!" He shut off his television, then sat up straight in bed. He nodded toward the end of the bed. "Have a seat!"

"Thanks," I said, sitting down at the foot of the bed.

"So, what do you want to talk about?" Eric asked.

I knew he was hoping I'd say Veronica, but I wasn't quite ready to talk about her. Not yet. "I want to talk about the trial that's in a few days. You're still going to testify, right?" I didn't want him backing down now.

Eric looked disappointed for just a second as he realized I wasn't going to talk about Veronica. Then, he composed himself. "Sure. Why wouldn't I?"

I shrugged. "I'm just making sure. I want to make sure that scumbag gets what he deserves."

"We all do." Eric placed a hand over my shoulder. "Don't worry, Scott. We're going to make him pay."

I smiled, and for the first time since Veronica's death, it was sincere. "Thank you. Right now, this is the best way you can be here for me."

Eric smiled too.

~BA~

That night at dinner, Scott was in better spirits. He was still crushed on the inside from losing the love of his life, but knowing that he was going to be able to help put the man that killed her behind bars helped lift his spirits—even if it was just enough to make him hungry for Rufus' chili.

He licked his lips. "Mm, Dad, this chili is amazing! Mom and Eric were both right!"

Rufus grinned proudly. "I'm glad you like it! It's my mother's secret recipe." He winked at Scott. "I've entered it in three contests and it's won all three. So many people have tried to get me to give them my secret, but they'll never get it out of me! Never!"

Scott couldn't help but shake his head and laugh. He hated when people made him laugh when he just wanted to be sad. He couldn't help it though. Rufus had always been able to make him laugh. It was one of the things he loved best about his biological father. That and the fact that he always seemed to understand his needs even when Scott didn't tell him what those needs were.

"Here's some more oyster crackers if you want," Lily said, pushing the bowl of crackers toward Scott.

"Thanks, Scott said, taking a few. He knew his mother was happy to see him smiling, and that she was eager to please him and keep him smiling.

Scott would try his best to put up a happy front around her. For her sake.

After the chili and crackers, they had a pumpkin pie that Lily had made.

"This is surprisingly good," Eric said as he ate his pie.

Lily raised an eyebrow. "Surprisingly?"

Eric smirked. "Face it, Mom. We all know you can't cook."

"Just because I can't cook, it doesn't mean I can't bake," Lily reasoned.

"Hey, Lil, for future reference, the pumpkin pie box goes in the recycling bin—not the garbage," Rufus said between bites of his pie.

Scott and Eric both looked at Lily.

Lily blushed. "I still know how to bake. I just figured a store bought pie would be less of a hassle to make."

Scott grinned. "Nice try, Mom."

Lily pouted, and took a sip of her drink.

After their pie, Scott tried to help clear the table, but Lily wouldn't let him. "I got it. Why don't you and your brother go find something on TV? We can all watch a movie together or something. You can pick one off Netflix."

"All right," Scott agreed with a shrug. Since he was feeling slightly better, he figured maybe watching TV with his family would help him continue to feel better. Besides, he'd be willing to do anything to prolong heading to bed. Nighttime was the worse. Nighttime was when he laid in bed and all the images of the night Veronica was killed came rushing back to him. He saw her death over and over in his head like a home movie on repeat. He wasn't ready to face again tonight. Not yet.

"Come on! Let's find a comedy. I think we could all use a good one. Did you see the new Adam Sandler one yet? It just came out on DVD," Eric said as he and Scott headed for the couch.

"No, I haven't," Scott said, sitting down on the couch.

Eric sat down next to him, and flipped on the television. "I haven't either. I'm dying to see it." His face suddenly paled. "Bad choice of words. I'm sorry."

Scott shrugged. "It's okay. It's a figure of speech." He put on a brave smile for Eric. He knew Eric had meant nothing by it, but it still made his heart sink a little.

The news was on.

"_The tragic story of the hit and run that took place on Halloween night when twenty-nine-year-old Travis Freeman hit and killed twenty-five-year-old Veronica Desmond with his car while drag racing then fled the scene has come to a conclusion,"_ the female newscaster stated.

"What do they mean conclusion?" Scott asked. He sat up straight, as did Eric.

_"Trevor and his lawyer father Robert Freeman have made a plea bargain. Trevor Freeman has pleaded guilty in order for there to be no trial, and to avoid jail time. Trevor has been sentenced to a hundred thousand dollar fine, and a year of community service and probation. Trevor has also had his license revoked, and will not be eligible to get it reinstated until he has served his community service, and his probation is over."_

"This is bullshit!" Scott said, grabbing the remote, and stabbing the off button with his thumb. He tossed the remote across the room. "What? He kills someone and all he has to do is pay a fine that is pocket change to his family, then do some little community service for a year? Are you kidding me? And, boo hoo, he can't drive for a year! Well, because of him, Veronica will never drive again!"

"It's going to be all right, Scott," Eric said gently.

Scott whipped around to face him. "And how is everything going to be okay, Eric? Hm? The man who murdered my girlfriend is still walking around without a care in the world. How is that okay?"

"It's not. I just meant, you'll get through this," Eric said, a little timidly.

Scott laughed bitterly. "Apparently, _he's_ gotten through it already. The only ones who haven't gotten through it are the victims! Poor Veronica's family must be heart broken now! How does the so called justice system let scum like that get off so easy? How?" Scott asked so loudly he was practically shouting.

Lily and Rufus walked over to him.

Lily gently placed a hand over Scott's shoulder. "It's not fair, Darling, I know it! I hate him as much as you do, but there's nothing we can do about it. We just have to hope that karma will eventually come around and bite him."

Rufus shook his head. "His father's a hot shot lawyer. I guess we really shouldn't be surprised his father was able to get him out of this. It's a sick world. Bad people get out of trouble the second a big wad of cash is thrown their way. I'm sure the hundred thousand dollar fine isn't the only money that was dished out to keep him out of prison. In fact, I'm willing to bet my gallery and all the paintings on it."

"I'm not going to stand for it. It's bull shit! Bull shit!" Scott snapped. He pushed his mother out of the way, then stormed up the stairs. "Nobody dare follow me!" he warned. "I am _so_ not in the mood right now!"

He got to his room, and slammed the door so hard the dresser rattled.

He then threw himself down onto his bed, grabbed his pillow, and screamed into it. There was no way in _hell_ he was letting Travis get away with this. No way in hell. He guessed, if the legal system wasn't going to make Travis pay for what he did to Veronica, then he was going to have to have to be his _own_ legal system.

He knew exactly what his first order of business was going to be. He was going to make sure that Trevor Freeman got exactly what was coming to him. Trevor Freeman wasn't going to get away with killing Veronica. No. Trevor Freeman was going to pay for what he had done. Scott would see to it.


	9. Insatiable

_**Begin Again Season Two**_

_**Episode 9: Insatiable**_

Scott arrived at Travis' apartment, thankful that you could find anyone's address on the Internet nowadays. He had gone over and over in his head the night before what he was going to say to Travis. Finally, he decided he simply had to see what Travis had to say for himself. He wanted to know if Travis was remorseful or not.

So, here he was at Travis' doorstep, working up the strength to knock. He didn't end up having to work up the strength, for the door opened.

"What took you so—" Travis cut himself off. "Oh. I thought you were someone else." He nodded at Scott. "Who are you?"

Scott took a deep breath and slowly let it out. He had been so angry, and so ready to give Travis a piece of his mind. Now, seeing him in person was making him clam up.

"What's the matter? You deaf or mute or something?" Travis asked. "I asked you a question. "Who are you?"

Travis' rudeness snapped Scott out of his speechlessness.

"I'm the boyfriend of the girl you hit and killed," Scott said cooly.

"Oh. That Veronica chick?" Travis shrugged. "Sorry about that. She shouldn't have been standing in the middle of the street. It's dangerous to stand in the middle of a New York City street—especially at night. She should have known better."

Scott was suddenly so angry, he could feel his whole face heat up, and he started to shake. "She was getting into a taxi!"

"No, she wasn't. She was standing in the middle of the street like an idiot. You don't stand in streets. Everyone knows that. Well, except for her. I guess she learned her lesson now, didn't she?" Travis asked.

It was that moment, that Scott snapped. With a loud, animalistic cry, he pounced on Travis. It seemed like something out of one of the action movies he loved, or even like one of those jungle documentaries. Scott didn't even feel like he was still in his own mind as he tackled Travis to the ground and began punching him in the face. "It was _your_ fault! You hear me? You're the one who was the idiot! Don't you know how dangerous drag racing is for not only yourself but for others as well? If you want to put yourself in danger, go right ahead. But don't you dare do something so stupid it puts others in danger too!"

Travis took a couple punches, then used all his weight roll Scott off him. He then punched Scott hard in the nose, instantly causing the blood to pour out of Scott's nose.

Scott tried to hit back, but Travis was too strong for him. Now that he had regained his senses and was no longer taken off guard, Travis had the upper hand. He punched Scott in the stomach and mouth, and then in both eyes.

"Hey, hey, what on earth is going on here?" Travis' father asked, standing in the doorway. He quickly ran over to his son and Scott, and pulled Travis off Scott.

Travis cried out in anger. "Don't you _ever_ try to take me on like that again! You hear me?" he yelled. He kicked Scott in the ribs.

Scott cried out in pain.

"You won't win," Travis warned him.

"Travis, knock it off this instant!" Robert scolded his son.

Travis slunk back a bit. "He started it."

"Yeah, well that didn't mean you had to finish it!" Robert snapped. He turned to Scott, who was slowly standing up. He nodded at him. "Are you okay, Son?"

"I'm not your son!" Scott snapped, shooting him a dirty look. As far as he was concerned, the man who got his girlfriend's killer off was just as bad as his girlfriend's killer. They were both to blame.

"What happened here?" Robert asked, ignoring Scott's rudeness.

Scott wiped his nose with the back of his hand. "What happened here is that your son killed my girlfriend, and you made it so that he doesn't have to pay for what he's done. You both make me sick!"

"Oh, so you're the boyfriend," Robert said in understanding.

"My name is Scott," Scott said coldly.

Robert sighed. "Well, Scott," he said softly, "I'm very sorry for your loss, but my son never meant to kill her. He was just racing with some friends at night. He just wanted to have a little fun."

Scott laughed bitterly. "A little fun? Are you kidding me? Do you know how many lives he put in danger besides my girlfriend? My girlfriend, whom by the way, he hit with his car then took without making sure she was okay!"

Robert remained calm, and handed him a tissue. "I know what my son did was stupid and illegal, but he is paying for it."

"No, he's not! Paying for it is going to jail. It's not having his daddy dish out pocket change to the so called justice system, and living in this cushy apartment. Nor is it doing community service, which is really the same asa a job! And don't even tell me about him losing his license! He should have lost it forever! He killed my girlfriend and doesn't even have to suffer the consequences. She'll never be able to drive again because she's dead. Your son _killed_ her. But does he care? No! He does not! Instead of being remorseful, he calls her an idiot for standing in the middle of the street in New York at night!" Scott was so angry, he was still red and shaking, and right now, he was on the brink of crying. He bunched up the tissue, then held it against his bloody nose.

"My son would never survive in jail. He made one stupid mistake. I'm not going to let him go to jail for who knows how long just because of one stupid night!" Robert said.

"Yeah, well that one stupid mistake, and that one stupid night cost my girlfriend her life!" Scott snapped. He sniffled, feeling drained.

Robert placed a hand over Scott's back, and gently led him outside of the apartment. "Go get your nose fixed up, Son, then get some sleep. Oh, and I wouldn't advise pressing charges against my son for hitting you. Judging by the looks of his face, he wasn't the only one who got some punches in. I got my son out of jail for killing a woman. Don't think I couldn't get him out for a small battery charge. He was just defending himself. You, however, might not be so lucky. You came to my son's apartment and started beating him up in his own home. It's so disgraceful, really."

Scott quickly yanked himself away from Robert. He saw the smug smile on Travis' face, and the look of superiority on Robert's face.

"You two make me sick!" he said.

Robert shrugged. "Hey, all I'm saying is that, you don't report Travis, and he won't report you. I'd say that's rather fair and generous, wouldn't you?" He smiled and winked at Scott.

Scott tossed his bloody nose tissue toward Robert, who quickly stepped out of the way.

"You have a nice day now," Robert said with a smirk and false sincerity before closing the door.

Scott stabbed the elevator's down button his index finger, then stepped into the elevator. He then screamed once the doors closed and he was alone in the elevator.

"You're not going to get away with it!" he yelled to the elevator walls. He kicked one of the walls. "I'll show both him and his ass hole father! They'll pay. Man are they going to **pay**!" he yelled louder. He kicked the wall again.

~BA~

The elevator doors opened, and I stepped off the elevator, and headed for the apartment complex's exit.

The doorman gave me a look as I left.

"What?" I snapped, before leaving without waiting for an explanation.

For the next three blocks, I walked, trying to figure out how I could make Travis and his father pay. It had to be big. It couldn't be something minor that they would quickly get over. No. I wanted to make them feel the pain that they had caused me. I wanted them to know what it felt like to lose someone they loved.

It was after this thought that I looked up and saw where I was. It was almost like a sign from God except, I don't think God would approve of the next thought that was suddenly filling my head. I was outside of a gun shop.

I stood outside the shop for a moment, and thought long and hard. Did I really have it in me? The more I thought about it, the more I thought of Veronica's sweet face. I heard her laughter in my head, and I replayed all the fun times we had together including the Halloween party that ended up being the last thing we'd ever do together. Then, I pictured her sweet smile right before Travis slammed into her with his car, then took off. Finally, I replayed the scene from earlier with Travis. I replayed him calling her an idiot and beating the crap out of me. I replayed his father being so non-caring, and so protective of his son. I suddenly had no doubt that yes, I had it in me.

I knew I couldn't walk into the gun store looking like a mess. I'd have to head home and get myself looking presentable again. But after I did that, I'd be back. And then Trevor would pay. There was no way in hell I was going to let him off Scott-free. Pun intended.

~BA~

"What happened to _you_?" Eric asked upon Scott's arrival back at the apartment.

Scott shrugged. "I got into a fight."

"With who?" Eric asked, sounding concerned.

"It doesn't matter. I have it under control," Scott said simply. He headed over to the sink, grabbed a paper towel, then wet the paper towel, and ran it over the blood stain under his nose. Thankfully, his nose had stopped bleeding.

"You look like hell," Eric said, coming up behind him.

"Gee, _thanks_," Scott said sarcastically.

"Well, you do. Are you all right?" Eric asked.

Scott sighed, and turned around to face him. "I'm fine. I held my own. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go upstairs to shower and change." He pushed passed Eric then, not wanting to be questioned any more by his pesky stepbrother. He knew Eric was just concerned, but he didn't need to be. What he needed was to do was mind his own business so that Scott could take care of what he needed to take care of—on his own.

He got to his room, grabbed some clean clothes, then headed to the bathroom to shower and to get looking presentable so that he could finally purchase the key to all his problems. Or at least, the key to his revenge.

~Begin Again~

"Where is Scott?" Lily asked when she arrived home from work.

Eric shrugged. "I don't know. He took a shower, and I went into my room to watch TV. When I came out to see how he was doing, he wasn't here."

"Where could he have gone?" Lily asked.

Eric shrugged. "I have no idea. I'm worried about him though. He got into a fight."

"What?" Lily placed a hand over her heart. "When? With whom?"

Eric quickly explained to her how Scott had arrived home earlier with his face all messed up. "I asked him who he got into a fight with and he wouldn't tell me. He just said it didn't matter, and that he had it under control."

"Well, obviously it does matter if he got beat up!" Lily said, suddenly even more worried for her son than she already was. "And obviously it's not under control."

The elevator doors opened, and Lily turned around in relief. "Scott?"

"Nope! Just me," Rufus said, stepping out of the elevator.

Lily sighed. "Oh."

"It's nice to know you're so happy that I'm home," Rufus joked as he walked over to her, and pulled her in for a kiss.

She sighed, and gently stroked his cheek. "I'm sorry, Darling. I'm just worried about Scott. According to Eric, he came home with his face all messed up. He said he had gotten into a fight, but wouldn't tell Eric who with."

Concern shown in Rufus' eyes. "He's not here now? Where is he?"

Lily shrugged. "I wish I knew! Oh, Rufus, I'm worried about him! I fear he's worse off than we thought."

"Whom could he have possibly gotten into a fight with?" Rufus asked.

Lily shrugged. "I'd love to know that myself! Gosh, I feel like I need to hire a private investigator to follow him around and report back to us what is going on with in his life."

Eric shook his head. "Please don't. He'd just find out and be super ticked off."

Lily sighed. "Well, I have to do _something_! I can't just let him go out and get into trouble! What if he gets beat up again?"

"I know where you're coming from, Lil, but as much as we hate it, he's a grown man now. He's capable of making his own decisions. He doesn't need his parents protecting him any longer," Rufus reasoned.

Eric nodded his agreement.

Lily shook her head. "Nonsense! As long as a parent is still alive, it is their job to protect their child no matter what his or her age!"

Rufus nodded. "If he or she is in real danger, then yes. But let's not jump to any conclusions. Guys get into fights al the time. It could be nothing."

"Well, our son doesn't get into fights all the time. Anyway, with the condition he is in right now after having just lost his girlfriend, I highly doubt it's nothing," Lily said, her arms crossed over her chest.

Rufus sighed. "Well, when he gets home, we'll talk to him. I just don't want to push him away, or make him clam up even more around us."

Lily sat down on the couch with a sigh.

Rufus sat down next to her, and pulled her into his arms. He kissed the top of her head. "It will be all right. I promise! We'll get it out of him who beat him up."

"I hope so," Lily said, resting her head on her fiancé's shoulder. One thing was for sure, when she found out who it was, and she _would_ find out, she was going to give whomever beat Scott up a reason to wish they had never messed with her son—especially when he was in such a fragile state.

~Begin Again~

Scott felt the cool metal against his hot hand, and it felt good. He cocked the gun, loving the little clicking sound it made. He imagined aiming it at Travis. Oh how fun it would be to see the look of terror on Travis' face when the gun was pointed at him! Or, better yet, if the gun was pointed on Travis' father. Would Travis be willing to take a bullet for his father? Probably not. Scott knew that Travis was a very selfish man. If you could even call him a man. In fact, he was pretty sure that Travis would push Robert in the way of the gun to avoid getting shot himself. Scott bet Robert would regret getting Travis off then. He smiled at the thought.

"So, is that gun to your liking?" Frank, the guy behind the counter that was currently waiting on him asked.

Scott looked up at him. "Do you have anything with more power?"

Frank snorted. "What exactly do you have in mind for it?"

Scott smirked. "You know how in the military they have a don't ask don't tell policy for gays and lesbians?"

Frank nodded. "Yeah, I've heard of that."

Scott smirked. "Well, I have the same policy for buying a gun. You don't ask, 'cause I won't tell."

Frank grinned, revealing a mouthful of bad teeth. "Fair enough." He took the gun back from Scott, and placed it back in the shelf. "I think I have just the thing for ya." He winked at Scott and grinned, then took out a black steel pistol with a brown handle, and handed it to Scott. "This'll get the job done, whatever that job may be."

Scott took the gun from him, and felt it. He grinned at Frank. "It's heavy!"

Frank nodded. "You bet it is! It also packs quite the punch! It is the most sturdy hand gun we own. It also, in my opinion, is the best shot. It's extremely accurate. Not to mention durable."

"How much?" Scott asked.

"I'll give you a deal. Give me five hundred dollars, and it's all yours," Frank said. He spit out a piece of tobacco he had been chewing into a golden tin pot behind the gun counter.

Scott set the gun on the counter, then slid it back to Frank. "I'll take it!"

Frank grinned, and took the gun back. "Excellent! The way it works is you give me half now as the down payment. Then, after your five-day waiting period is over, you can give me the rest of the money, and I will give you your gun."

Scott took out his wallet, then took out $250 from it, and handed the cash over to Frank. "So, I'll be back in five days then."

"If you want, I can give you a call once it's ready to be picked up," Frank offered.

Scott shook his head. "No, thank you. I'll just show up for it."

Frank shrugged. "Suit yourself! See you in five days then."

Scott nodded. "Five days," he muttered as he left the gun shop. "Five days until Travis gets what's coming to him," he muttered once he was out of earshot.

~Begin Again~

"So, how was work today?" Rufus asked Lily as they got ready to go out to dinner. They were in the bedroom, Lily's portrait now up on the wall. Since it was in a private room where only she and Rufus went into, Lily had agreed to hang the portrait even though she was still embarrassed about the literally revealing incident.

Lily sat at her vanity, and brushed through her hair. "It was all right. The same old boring stuff."

"You know, you could come to work for me. I could use some help," Rufus suggested, coming up behind her and kissing her neck.

Lily smiled. "Thanks, but I think it's best we don't work together. We'd probably get on each other's nerves if we were around each other all day every day."

"You're probably right," Rufus agreed.

Lily looked up at him from over her shoulder. "But thank you for the offer anyway. I appreciate it."

Rufus bent down so that they could kiss on the lips.

Lily then went into her drawer for something, then smiled big when she saw a big manila envelope. She took it out of the drawer.

"What's that?" Rufus asked, nodding toward the envelope.

Lily grinned at him. "I had more shots taken than just that one hanging up on the wall." Lily motioned to the big canvas portrait of her on the wall. "The photographer let me keep eight by tens and wallets of the other shots."

Rufus licked his lips. "If they're anything like the final product, I'd like to see them please." He wondered what other sexy poses she had in store for him!

Lily handed him the envelope, then turned in her chair to face him. "I hope you like them. I'm still kind of shy about them."

Rufus smirked at her, and raised an eyebrow. "Lil, if you look anything in these like you do on that one up there on the wall," he paused to motion at the portrait on the wall, "then I can guarantee you I will love them, and that there is nothing to be shy about." He moaned, then sat down at the end of the bed, and opened the flap of the envelope. He was in lust for Lily already and he hadn't even seen the pictures!

He pulled out the pictures and moaned again as he saw the first shot, then the second, third, forth, and fifth. He took his time examining each photo, drinking in every little detail. Like the way Lily's breasts clearly showed through the thin little material of her negligees.

"Do you like?" Lily's voice asked, breaking the silence.

Rufus looked up at her. He had been in another world looking at the pictures. He hadn't said a word yet about them. He had been too busy drinking Lily's body in. He was suddenly very in the mood for the real thing.

He licked his lips, and handed the pictures back to her. "I liked them so much, we're going to be late for dinner."

Lily grinned. She set the pictures on her vanity, then slowly got out of her chair, and sashayed over to him before sitting on the end of the bed next to him. "So, you liked them that much, hm?" She gently stroked his hair out of his face.

"Baby, you have no idea!" Rufus said, licking his lips again as he took in Lily's body. She was only in her black lace bra and underwear. He gently pushed her down backward onto the bed.

She was the one to lick her lips this time as she reached up to take Rufus' face between her hands. "Show me how much you like them then. Enlighten me. You know, since I have no idea." She smiled playfully at him and winked.

Rufus moaned. "Oh, I'm going to show you all right!"

"Your dress shirt is getting all wrinkled," Lily said with a pout as she slowly began unbuttoning his shirt.

Rufus shrugged. "It's okay. I have plenty more where that came from. I guess you better take this one off then, hm?" He began kissing down the side of her neck, gently nipping at the skin without waiting for an answer.

Lily continued to unbutton his shirt, then peeled it off him and tossed it to the floor, apparently no longer worried about it getting wrinkled.

Lily then rolled them so that she was the one on top. She straddled his waist as she undid his belt, her eyes locked on his as she unlatched it. She then leaned down and purred into his ear, "So, exactly how much did you like those photos, my Darling?" She pulled his belt out, and tossed it to the floor with the shirt.

Rufus licked his lips, and ran his hands slowly down Lily's arms. He wanted her so much right now, he could hardly contain himself! "I loved them so much, I want to skip dinner and stay home in bed with you for the rest of the evening and night."

Lily smiled. "Well, I'm too hungry to skip dinner all together, but I'm certainly not opposed to having dessert first." She ran her hands slowly down his chest, her lips, following the path of her hands as she placed gentle kisses from his collar bone to his belly button. Next, she unzipped and slid off his pants, letting them fall to the floor as well. "It's a shame you know, all those nice articles of clothing lying on the floor, getting all wrinkled." She pouted.

Rufus, now clad only in his underwear, pulled her closer to him. "Well, then I guess we had better make sure that they weren't wrinkled for nothing, shouldn't we?"

Lily nodded. "Indeed we should."

Rufus wasted no more time then as he reached behind Lily and unlatched her bra. He then gently pushed the straps off her shoulders, allowing the bra to drop to the bed. Next, he picked it up, and flung it like a slingshot across the room.

Lily giggled. "_Charming_," She teased.

Rufus grinned. He then rolled them so that Lily was once again beneath him. Then, he took her left breast into his mouth, letting his tongue play around with it.

Lily closed her eyes, and tangled her fingers in his hair.

Rufus then moved onto the right breast as his hands moved down to the smooth expanse of her stomach. When he got below her stomach, he gently pulled off her underwear, and tossed them to the floor with the rest of the clothing.

He then crawled back up her body, not wanting to wait any longer to make love to the object of all his desires.

Lily slid his underwear off, then surprised him by moving them so that she was now the one on top.

He licked his lips. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Why should you always be the one in control?" she asked. "I'm Lily Rhodes. It anyone should be in control, it should be me."

Rufus ran his hands down her soft back, loving that Lily was taking charge. Sometimes he liked to be the one in control, but this time, Lily taking control was turning him on to no end! Especially with all those pictures he had just looked at—and the one on the wall, which he could see now that he was the one on bottom.

"I don't know what's gotten into you," he said to her, "but I sure like it!" He licked his lips, his eyes drinking in her naked form, which now, thanks to Lily being on top, he had a good view of.

Lily grinned. She then brushed her lips against his right ear. "I can tell you what's _about_ to get into me if that helps," she purred.

He moaned, his eyes filling with lust. "I'd rather you show me," he said, his voice a little shaky. She was driving him mad. In fact, if he didn't have her soon, he was going to explode. And of course that couldn't happen until he was inside of her.

He didn't have to worry, however, for Lily wasted no time in showing him exactly what was about to get into her. And in not time at all, something had definitely gotten into her.

He moaned as she also wasted no time moving her body over his, her head thrown back, and her hands placed over his sides.

She bit her bottom lip and moaned. "Oh, Rufus, yes!"

Rufus was going to suggest to her that she be a little quieter since Eric was in his room getting ready for dinner. However, he didn't want to ruin the mood by mentioning her son's name. Also, it would be kind of hypocritical of him to tell her to be quiet when he currently let out a loud moan himself. He couldn't help it! She felt _so_ good, and she knew exactly how to move to make every nerve in his body come to life with pleasure. He moaned long and loud again. "Lily...Oh, Lily, yes!"

His eyes were rolled to the back of his head. Making love with Lily was always amazing, but for some reason this time seemed even better. It was absolutely mind-blowing in every sense of the word!

Lily moved faster and harder over his body, her moans escalating in decibels.

Rufus rapidly felt himself being pushed over the edge, and as soon as Lily's vocalness, and the look on her face that was oh so familiar to him told him that she had reached her climax, he let go and reached it with her.

For a moment after, they just stayed there as one, breathing heavily, and trying to catch their breaths.

"That...was...amazing!" Lily said with a big smile.

Rufus grinned just as big. "You can say that again!"

Lily licked her lips. "Mm, that was amazing! It deserved to be said twice." She slid off him, then laid down on her back, looking up at the ceiling, the smile still on her face. She then turned to Rufus, propping herself up on her elbow. "We definitely have to do it that way again sometime soon."

Rufus turned to her and gently stroked her hair. "Thank you. You were incredible." He gently kissed her lips.

Lily's eyes lowered as she kissed him in return. "You were the incredible one, my Darling." They kissed some more, and soon, Rufus had made his way on top of Lily again. He couldn't help it. Their love making had been so good, it had put him in the mood again—especially with all those half naked pictures of Lily still on his mind!

She smiled, and eyebrow raised. "Again?"

Rufus licked his lips and nodded, his own eyes lowered. "Yes, again. But this time, _I_ want to be the one in control."

Lily licked her lips, and pulled him close as he got on top of her. She gently brushed her lips against his right earlobe. "Well, then show me what you got!" she purred sexily.

Rufus moaned. "Oh, he was going to show her what he had, all right. And she was going to love exactly what he had to offer.

~Begin Again~

As Rufus made love to Lily, Lily couldn't help but feel glad that she had had that portrait and pictures taken of her. After all, it had been months ago that she had had those pictures taken, and now she was still reaping the benefits.

She moaned as Rufus entered her again. Those pictures must have pleased him even more than she had thought because Rufus was now even better in bed than he had been before, and he had been _amazing_ before. Now he was _beyond_ amazing. She didn't even have the right words to describe it.

She moaned even louder as he took her again and again, each time seemingly more forceful, and giving her more pleasure than she'd ever felt in her life.

Her eyes rolled to the back of her head and she threw her head back with yet another loud, drawn out moan as Rufus continued to show her body what pure euphoria was. Judging from the loud sounds coming from his lips, he was enjoying this just as much as she was. His moans only aided in the pleasure she was feeling. She knew she wasn't going to last long.

Sure enough, it wasn't much longer before she was screaming his name and gripping his hair so tightly, she was practically pulling it as she felt her whole body tremor from her climax.

Rufus was right behind her, his body jerking roughly, and his shouts loud as he reached his climax with her.

For a moment, like earlier, they stayed together panting, and trying to regain their breaths. Then, Rufus slid off of Lily, and lay down on his back.

Lily faced him, and kissed his chest. "You were amazing."

"Mm, as were you, my love," Rufus murmured.

They kissed.

"So, have you worked up an appetite yet?" Lily asked him with a sly grin.

Rufus grinned. "Only for you!" He wriggled his eyebrows up and down suggestively at her.

Lily giggled. "Rufus, again? You beast! No. We're going out to dinner. Eric and Scott will be waiting."

"If Scott ever gets home," Rufus quipped.

"Don't say that," Lily said with a gentle shove. "He will. He has nowhere else to go." She bit her bottom lip. At least, she _hoped_ he had no place else to go. Great! Now Rufus had made her start to worry again.

~BA~

I bit my bottom lip. "You just had to mention that, didn't you?"

Rufus sighed, and gently stroked my hair. "I'm sorry, Lil. I didn't mean to worry you. You're right. He'll be back. He wouldn't just not come home."

"I hope you're right," I said, trying not to let my imagination turn things into something they weren't.

"He'll be home, then we can all go out to dinner as a family. However, since we have to wait for Scott anyway, do you think I'd have time for a little appetizer first?" Rufus then asked me, tracing a finger slowly around my left nipple.

I bit my bottom lip, and watched him trace around it. He knew how to get my mind off things. Part of me was annoyed by him for trying to get my mind off the topic, and another part of me was grateful. I didn't like worrying even though it came so naturally to me. "You just can't get enough today, can you?" I asked him, even though the answer was obvious.

He shook his head. "I can never get enough of you, Lil." He brought his lips to my breast and kissed it, letting his tongue glide over it. "You're just so incredibly beautiful, and I love you so much."

"I love you too," I murmured as he moved his mouth to the other breast. He never was one to show partiality.

He removed his mouth from my breast, and grinned at me. "So, what do you say? May I have that appetizer?"

I smirked. "What did you have in mind?"

He grinned even bigger. "Something from down under!" he joked as he slowly started trailing kisses down my stomach.

I laughed. "Rufus, you are so bad!"

He laughed too. "What?" he asked in an Australian accent. "I just want to put a shrimp on the barbie!"

We were both laughing now, but our laughter quickly ceased as the door flung open to reveal Scott standing there, looking flushed.

"Oh my gosh, Scott!" I exclaimed in surprise, quickly pulling the blankets up over my exposed chest. As if the portrait fiasco hadn't been embarrassing enough, now my son had seen me in bed with his father wearing even less than I had been wearing in the portrait, and in person at that! Kill me now.

~BA~

"Well, it's nice to see you two are no longer upset over Victoria's death, and you apparently couldn't care less that her killer is getting off Scott free," Scott said simply.

"Scott, Honey, of course we're upset! Your father and I were just—" Lily tried to explain, but Scott cut her off.

"No. Please don't tell me what you were just. I get it. I'm not stupid, nor am I blind," Scott snapped.

Lily could feel her mouth dropping open. She was shocked! Scott had never talked to her that way before!

"We just wanted something to help take our minds off things for a while, Scott. It doesn't make us any less sad over what happened, or any less angry over Travis getting away with it," Rufus said calmly.

Scott snorted. "Right! I could hear you laughing even before I opened the door. You know what? Save it. You just go back to 'taking your mind off things,' or whatever it is you're calling it!" He turned to leave.

"Scott, we're going to go to dinner soon. Just let us get dressed, then we can go, all right?" Lily asked, trying to change the subject. She just wanted this whole awkward situation to be over.

"No thanks. I'm suddenly not hungry," Scott said, heading for the door. His eyes then fell upon the pictures that still set on the nightstand. "_Nice_," he said, pushing them off the nightstand and to the floor before leaving, and slamming the door behind him.

"Well, that went well," Rufus joked.

"How can you joke at a time like this?" Lily asked, gently slapping his chest. "Our son hates us!" She pouted.

Rufus held her close. "He doesn't hate us, Lil. He's just going through something very hard to go through right now. Trust me, it's not us." He gently rubbed her back.

Lily sighed. "I hope not." The very _last_ thing she needed right now was for Scott to start hating her and Rufus. Actually, it was the last thing _any_ of them needed.


	10. Suspicious Minds

_**Begin Again Season Two**_

_**Episode 10: Suspicious Minds **_

Scott couldn't believe he had walked in on his parents. It only added to the trauma he was already experiencing from seeing his girlfriend killed. Now he had to catch his parents post sex as well? It was almost too much to bear. He supposed at least it hadn't been _during_ sex. That would have just been the last straw. Though, seeing those half naked pictures of Lily hadn't been a picnic. Those were almost as bad as if he'd walked in on them having sex. Almost.

He sighed as he lay down on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He wished he could just leave. However, he knew that if he left, Rufus and Lily would tell his parents that he wasn't with them anymore, then his parents would worry, and come home early from their cruise. Then, Scott would feel like a monster, which was the very last thing he needed right now.

Anyway, he couldn't leave. Not before taking care of what he needed to take care of. He wished there wasn't a waiting period for a gun. He wanted to make Travis pay now—not in five days.

Suddenly, there was a gentle knock on his door. "Scott, Honey, can we come in?"

Scott sighed, and rolled his eyes. It was Lily, and judging from the "we," Rufus was there too. He so did not feel like talking to or seeing either of them right now. He was still embarrassed about having walked in on them. Also, he was a little angry that they didn't seem to have a care in the world even though his girlfriend had just died. However, he knew they wouldn't go away until they had said whatever it was they wanted to say. So, with another sigh, he granted them access. "I suppose!"

The door opened, and in walked Lily, with of course, Rufus right behind her.

Rufus shut the door behind them, then they both sat at the end of Scott's bed, one on each side.

Scott sat up straight. "What do you want?" he asked, not bothering to try to sound friendly. He was angry with them, and he wanted them to know it!

"We're _so_ sorry you had to walk in on what you walked in on," Lily began.

Scott looked away, blushing a bit. "I don't want to talk about it."

"We want you to know that it does not mean we're not sad and upset over what happened to Veronica. What happened to her was tragic and terrible, and she was such a wonderful, sweet girl! However, that doesn't mean we have to be sad our whole lives. Letting ourselves be sad all the time isn't going to help things," Rufus explained calmly.

Scott whipped his head over to face him. "What? So I'm supposed to just get over it and move on?"

Rufus nodded. "Well, I don't mean it that harshly, but in a manner of speaking, yes! I know it's hard, and I know you'll always love Veronica, but Son, you have to try to move on. Do you really think Veronica would want you to be sad and depressed for the rest of your life?"

Scott narrowed his eyes at his father. "Do you really think Veronica would want her killer to get away with murdering her?"

"It was an accident," Lily said quietly.

Scott whipped his face over to her. "Oh, so it's okay since he didn't meant to do it?" he snapped.

Lily paled. "Of course it isn't! He deserves to pay for what he did, I agree! But sadly, he doesn't have to pay much. It's not right and it's not fair, but sometimes, Scott, life just isn't fair. We just have to accept it and move on. Otherwise, we'll never find peace! We'll just be miserable forever!"

"You know what? Don't even try to talk to me about Veronica. You didn't know her as well as I did. She doesn't matter to you as much because you barely knew her. I'm the one who loved her. I'm the one that was going to ask her to marry me. She was my everything. To you, she was just some girl that was going to possibly be your daughter-in-law. You barely knew her. She was just a stranger to you, so I don't know why I expected you to care." Scott looked away. "Now please go off to your dinner and leave me alone."

"But Scott, I did love her! I know I didn't know her long, but I still grew to love her. She was an easy person to love!" Lily protested.

Scott looked at her with said, cold eyes. "Then you should care about making sure her murderer pays for what he did. You don't care though, do you?"

Lily's mouth dropped open. "I..." She trailed off.

Scott nodded. "Exactly. Now get the hell out of my room."

Lily gasped at Scott's harsh words.

"Scott, you apologize to your mother right now for talking to her that way!" Rufus snapped. He placed an arm around over Lily's shoulders.

"For one, I'm an adult. Stop treating me like a child. For two, she's not my mother, and you're not my father. Biologically maybe, but that's all! She gave me up, and you didn't even know about me. Shows you how attentive you were. My _real_ parents are on a cruise," Scott snapped. He knew it was mean, but right now he felt that he _needed_ to be mean. Rufus and Lily were acting like a bunch of uncaring jerks, and the last thing he wanted to do now was be nice to them.

Rufus' mouth was the one to drop this time. He looked like he was going to say something, opening then closing his mouth a couple of times.

Lily then stood up, crying, and left the room.

Rufus glared at Scott. "Look, I know you're upset right now, and it's understandable. You just lost your girlfriend, and her killer is free. I get it. But adult or not, while you are underneath your mother's and my roof, you will respect us whether you consider us your parents our not!" He got up off the bed and headed for the door. "If you're not going to dinner with us, you can fend for yourself." He then slammed the door behind him.

Scott cried out in anger and frustration and punched his pillow before pressing his face against it and screaming. Had everyone gone insane? Did no one care that Veronica had been killed and her killer was going to get away with it?

He rolled over onto his back, and clenched his fists. Except, he wasn't going to get away with it, and neither was his lawyer father. No. He would pay, and he would pay good—they both would. As soon as that five-day waiting period was over, it was on. Both Travis and his father would finally get the punishment they deserved.

~Begin Again~

"I can't believe he said that to me," Lily sniffled. "I can't believe he said that to _us_!" She looked at Rufus, tears in her eyes as they sat together on the couch.

Rufus gently rubbed her back. "He didn't mean it, Lil. He's just going through a really hard time right now. He's acting out to try to get the anger out. We just need to give him time. It's been less than two weeks since he saw her die. He's not going to heal overnight."

Lily sniffled again. "I know. His words still stung though. I mean, they must have been coming from _somewhere_. He's upset yes, but that doesn't mean what he said wasn't a part of what he's been feeling. He still resents me for giving him up."

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, he resents me too for not figuring out you were pregnant," Rufus said with a sigh.

Lily shook her head, then grabbed a tissue, and blew her nose. "It doesn't. We're his parents, Rufus. His other parents may have raised him, but we're the ones who gave him life. If we hadn't given him life, then he wouldn't have been there for his other parents to have raised."

Rufus nodded. "True."

"Now he doesn't even think of us as his real parents, and it just breaks my heart!" Lily cried. She grabbed another tissue, and blew her nose again.

Rufus started back up rubbing her back. "He does. Deep down he does consider us his real parents. After all, if he didn't, then why did he even bother trying to find us in the first place?"

"To tell us off?" Lily asked with another sniffle.

Rufus shook his head. "You know that's not true. He wanted to meet us because he still longed for that feeling of love and belonging you only get from parents. Remember how happy he was when we got married? He was so happy to know that his parents loved each other, and that we wanted him in our lives. He was happy that we were looking for him. He wanted to be found. That is why he came to find us instead of letting us believe that our son was dead."

Lily sighed. "I guess when you put it _that_ way."

Rufus pulled her close, and kissed the top of her head. "He loves us, Lil, just as much as we love him. He's just going through something now, and we need to be there for him, or in this case, give him some space. Now, what do you say we go out to dinner and give him that space he so desperately desires? We can bring him something back in case he gets hungry later."

Lily hated the thought of leaving her son in his time of need, but she supposed that Rufus was right. Their presence there only seemed to anger Scott—not make him feel any better. "All right. Let's get Eric and leave then."

Rufus nodded, then got up off the couch, and headed toward the stairs. "Eric, are you ready to go?"

A moment later, Eric's footsteps could be heard as he made his way to the top of the stairs. "Why don't you two go? I'll stay here with Scott. I'll make us something for dinner, and see if I can get him to eat. Sometimes siblings have better luck than parents, you know?"

Lily was pleased with this, but she didn't want Eric to feel obligated. "Are you sure? You're more than welcome to join us if you'd like. Scott wants his space anyway."

Eric shook his head. "You guys go. We'll be fine here. I promise."

"All right, if you're sure," Lily said. She hoped this would be good for Scott, but at the same time, she also didn't want Eric to get the backlash she and Rufus did for not leaving Scott alone.

"I'm sure. Go. Have fun. Bring me back some chocolate cake, or whatever good dessert they have. Bring Scott some too. That'll cheer him up!" Eric smiled brightly.

Lily doubted that chocolate cake was going to make Scott forget his problems, but she supposed it was worth a shot. "We won't be late," she said as Rufus helped her into her jacket.

A minute later, she and Rufus were ready to go and in the elevator, headed down to the lobby.

Lily sighed. "I hope Scott doesn't go off on Eric like he did with us."

Rufus gently rubbed her back. "Don't worry. Eric's right—siblings _do_ seem to have better luck than parents do."

Lily sighed. "I hope you're right." She didn't feel like coming home to Scott being at Eric's throat as well.

~BA~

"I'm worried," I said as we looked over our menus at the restaurant.

Rufus smirked. "We just got here, Lil. Try to relax."

"It's hard to relax when your son hates you," I said. Scott's words from earlier still rang loud in my head. I should have known he wasn't just going to get over me giving him away just like that. I wondered how long he had been harboring those feelings.

The waiter came, and Rufus ordered us both some red wine.

"It's will help calm your nerves, he told me with a smile and a wink as the waiter left to get our wine.

I sighed. "Somehow, I highly doubt that."

Rufus reached across the table and took my hand in his. He gently rubbed the back of it with his thumb. "Lil, I know it's hard to relax, but you have to trust Eric. All right? He's a smart boy, and he knows what he's doing. He's gone through some pretty hard times himself. He'll know how to get through to Scott."

I sighed. "I hope so."

Rufus squeezed my hand again. "I know so! Now, can you please at least try to enjoy our dinner together? I want to enjoy our last dinners together while we're just dating. We won't have many more of these dates before we're husband and wife." He smiled and winked at me.

I felt my heart flutter a bit, despite my worry over my son. I couldn't help but smile as well. "I can hardly wait to be your wife again. This time for good."

"And I can hardly wait to be your husband again. This time for good," he said with another smile and wink at me. My hand was still in his, and he gently rubbed my hand with his thumb again.

I brought his hand to my lips and kissed it. "I was a fool to ever let you go."

"I was the fool to ever let you let me go—twice!" he said.

"Well, now we're back together, and this time, I'm never going to let you go," I assured him.

"Good! Even if you tried to let me go, I wouldn't let you this time," he assured me.

I raised an eyebrow. "In a certain way, that could sound creepy." I put on my best impression of his voice. "Don't even _try_ to leave me! I won't let you!"

Rufus laughed. "I so do _not_ sound like that!"

I laughed. "I don't know, I think I do a pretty good impression of you!"

"Well, then you sound like this." Rufus put on his best impression of my voice. "I'm Lily Rhodes, and I've dated all ass holes before Rufus! He's the best guy in the whole world! You'll never find a more handsome, funny, sexy, guy than Rufus! And he can imitate my voice so well too!"

I laughed again, this time slightly harder. "Oh my gosh, Rufus I do _not_ sound like that at all! Why do all men make women's voices sound like Mickey Mouse?"

Rufus shrugged. "Why do women make all guys' voices sound like some big, burly football player?"

"Fair enough," I said. "And, aside from the part about you being able to imitate my voice well, you're spot on. You're are everything you said you are."

He gently squeezed my hand. "And, let me rephrase my earlier statement. "I'm never going to let you want to let me go. I promise to spend the rest of my life, making you so happy you chose to make me the one you spend the rest of your life with."

I took his hand, and gently ran it across my cheek. "I know," I said in almost a whisper. I had found a keeper in Rufus, and I was finally open-eyed enough to see it.

~BA~

"You know, chocolate is an aphrodisiac," Rufus stated as they ate their chocolate cake for dessert. "Not that I need it after seeing those pictures of you earlier that, for the record, I still _cannot_ get off my mind."

Lily blushed. "Sh! I don't want anyone overhearing you."

"It's nothing to be shamed about, Lil. Heck, I bet none of these guys in here have a lover as smoking hot as you are," Rufus said as he gestured with his hand around the room. "Mm, I just want to take you right here on this table!"

Lily smirked. "Somehow, I don't think you'd get away with that. _We'd_ be the ones to end up in jail."

"We'd really embarrass Scott then if he had to come to the jail to bail out his parents for having sex in a restaurant! Heck, Eric could come with him. Why not double traumatize him too? Remember when he heard us all the way from his room? Misery loves company! They can be traumatized together. How's that sound?" Rufus teased, a big grin on his face, and his eyebrows moving suggestively up and down.

Lily nearly choked on her cake. "Stop it!" she said with a laugh, once she had managed to get the cake down with a swig of her wine. "You're so bad!"

Rufus' eyes suddenly turned lust-filled. "But you like me when I'm bad, don't you?" He gently ran his foot up her leg.

Lily looked at him, feeling kind of lust-glazed herself. "All right, fine. But we're going to the Hilton. I'm not going to subject either of our sons to our romps anymore. And we're only going for a couple hours! Our kids will be waiting for us."

Rufus snickered. "You said romps!"

Lily rolled her eyes. "Why are men so immature?" she asked.

Rufus shrugged, and shoved a piece of chocolate cake in his mouth. He chewed it for a minute, then swallowed. "I think it's because women are the superior sex, and so men feel they might as well act like what they are—inferior to women."

Lily smiled, and licked her lips. "And that answer, my Darling," She paused to rub her stockinged foot up his pant leg, "is the answer that's going to get you something extra special from me tonight at the Hilton."

Rufus moaned. "And what mind that be?" he asked.

Lily smiled and winked at him. "I guess you're just going to have to wait and see now, won't you?" She loved how Rufus had made her feel better even though she had been a mess earlier. Tonight, she planned to thank him for it. Rufus was her rock, and like he was never going to let her want to let him go, she was never going to let him wish he had.

~Begin Again~

Scott was quite relieved when Rufus and Lily left, though quite annoyed when he found out Eric hadn't.

Eric gently knocked on his door. "Scott?"

Scott sighed. "Oh my _gosh_! Doesn't anyone in this family know what I want to be left alone means?" He took his annoyance out on his pillow by punching it.

Eric opened the door, and walked right in. "Tough! Like it or not, I'm here to keep you company. You're only here for two weeks, you've been here for three days already, and I have barely gotten to hang out with you." He sat down on the bed.

Scott made a mental note to start locking his door. "Fine. What do you want to do then, hm? Stare at the boring white walls in this room? Eat Rufus' leftover waffles just to tick him off?"

"I was thinking more on the lines of pizza and a movie." Eric grinned. "But eating Rufus' waffles just to tick him off does sound kind of fun."

As much as he wanted to stay angry, Scott couldn't help but crack a small smile. "I've already been a jerk to him and Lily today. We better not."

Eric raised an eyebrow. "I _thought_ I heard shouting. What's wrong?"

"Well, I kind of walked in on Mom and Dad..." Scott trailed off with a wince. "I can't even say it!"

Eric suddenly turned pale. "I know what you're going to say. Just be glad you don't have a room right below theirs. This is the second time they didn't bother trying to tone it down." He literally shuddered. It reminds me of one of the many reasons I'm glad to have my own place now."

"Well, I didn't hear them from my room, so I had no idea what was going on when I got to their room. I mean, I didn't walk in on them actually doing it, but it was right afterwards. I knew what they had been doing. Then, to top it off, I saw more pictures of Mom wearing hardly anything. They were from the portrait photo shoot I guess. Between being embarrassed, disgusted, and still upset over Veronica, I flipped out. I told them off for not being sad about Veronica's death anymore," Scott explained. He looked away in shame.

Eric gently placed a hand over Scott's shoulder. "I understand. But they're still upset, Scott. They just weren't dating her. They didn't have that deep connection you had with her. Also, think about it. Do you know of anyone else who died? From old age or whatever reason?"

Scott nodded. "My adoptive father's father. My grandpa. He died of old age."

"You loved him very much, and were sad when he died, right?" Eric pressed.

Scott nodded. "He was the best!"

"But you were really happy with Veronica, and even before Veronica you had happy times, right?" Eric asked.

Scott nodded. "Of course!"

"So, since you were happy, laughing, and having fun, does that mean you no longer care that your grandpa is gone? Does it mean you miss him any less?" Eric asked next.

Scott shook his head. "Of course not!"

Eric gave him a knowing look.

Scott nodded. "Point taken. I know I'll have to apologize to them when they get home." He looked down at the bed in shame. "I kind of told them I didn't consider them my real parents."

Eric placed a hand over his shoulder. "They're parents. They've heard worse. Trust me. Heck, we both know Jenny!"

Scott looked at Eric and grinned. "That we do!"

"Sadly!" they said in unison then.

They burst out laughing, and high-fived each other.

Eric playfully nudged Scott's shoulder with his fist. "I'm glad you're starting to feel better." He raised an eyebrow. "Are you feeling better enough to get a pizza and rent a movie?" He smiled hopefully.

Scott laughed, and gently nudged Eric's arm with his fist in return. "Sure. But let's order it in, and get the movie from Netflix, all right? It's too cold outside. I'm more in the mood for a nice night in."

Eric held up his hands. "No complains here! I hate the cold probably even more than you do. So, what should we rent?"

Scott thought about it for a moment. He then looked up at Eric hopefully. "_The Godfather_? I've seen it before, but it was a while ago."

Eric nodded. "Sounds good to me! You go bring it up, and I'll call in our pizza. Is meat lovers okay?"

Scott nodded. "Meat lovers is perfect!"

Eric grinned. "Great! I'll go call now."

Scott smiled as he watched Eric disappear from the room. Tonight was turning out to not be so bad after all. In fact, Scott was starting to think that maybe Eric could maybe help him with his little problem with Travis and his father. The question was, would Eric be all for it, or freak out on him about it?

He jumped out of bed, and headed or the door. He'd drop subtle hints to Eric without actually telling him anything. He'd see if he could figure out if Eric would help him or not. If he felt Eric would help him, he'd ask him to. If he felt Eric wouldn't help him, then he'd keep his mouth shut, and go at it alone. Either way, Travis and his father would pay. Yes. Five days. Five days, and then they would pay.

~Begin Again~

"All right, the pizza is ordered! I got us some breadsticks and mild wings too. I'm sorry. I should have asked if you liked your wings hot. I for one can't stand hot things, but I should have ordered hot ones for you," Eric said as he came into the living room and sat down next to Scott, who had the movie on the television all ready to go.

"It doesn't matter to me. I like them either way. One thing about me, I like to eat pretty much anything," Scott said.

Eric smiled. "Good! Now, if Mom and Rufus ever bring us back that cake I asked for, we'll have dessert set up too."

"I'm surprised we're even hungry after what I witnessed today, and after what you reminisced about earlier," Scott quipped.

Eric made a face. "Okay, let's not bring that up again, all right? I don't feel like vomiting all over the couch."  
Scott nodded. "You're right." He turned the movie on then, and Eric clapped the lights off.

"I know the clap lights are marketed for old people, but they really come in handy when you're too lazy to get up and turn them off or on," Eric stated.

Scott laughed. "I know, right?"

They then watched the movie for a bit. Eric noticed how Scott was watching it like his eyes were glued to the screen. Scott was also making a shooting motion with his hand, and "shooting" along with the current gunman.

"You really get into this movie, don't you?" he asked Scott. "Almost like fans of _The Rocky Horror Picture Show_ do with their movie."

Scott grinned at him. "I just find it exhilarating, watching all the action. Don't you? Isn't it kind of fun to imagine yourself as part of the action?"

Eric shrugged. "I guess. Just so long as I'm not the victim."

Scott grinned, and went back to watching the movie.

The doorbell rang then, and Eric paused the movie, then clapped the lights back on, and headed over to collect their dinner. He had already paid for it with his credit card over the phone, but he handed the delivery boy a five dollar tip.

"Thanks!" the delivery boy said, stuffing the money in his pocket, then taking off.

Scott came into the foyer then, and took the food from Eric. "How much do I owe you for dinner?"

"You're hanging out with me tonight. That's payment enough," Eric said, shutting and locking the door.

"Well, thank you," Scott said, carrying the food into the kitchen, and setting it on the island.

"You're very welcome!" Eric said.

They then got out the plates, napkins, and cups, and poured the soda from the two liter bottle of Pepsi Eric had ordered with the food. Then, once their food and drinks were all set, they headed back into the living room to finish their movie and eat.

Eric clapped the lights back off, and they did just that.

When the movie was over, Scott turned off the TV, then clapped the lights back on. He then turned to face Eric. "So, what did you think of the movie?"

Eric shrugged. "It was pretty good. Like you, I've seen it before, but it never really gets old. It's a classic!"

"Do you ever wonder what it's like to shoot a gun?" Scott asked next.

Eric didn't think much of this question. After all, he was pretty sure all guys wondered what it was like to shoot a gun. Heck, a lot of men liked to hunt, so to him, it wasn't an unusual question by any means. He shrugged. "Sure! I don't know if I'd ever want to though. I love animals far too much to hunt."

"What about a person? Would you ever shoot anyone?" Scott asked next.

Now Eric was getting weirded out. "Um, I've never really seriously thought of shooting someone. Maybe when someone acts like a jerk to me I think about it, but I'd never actually shoot them. Why?"

Scott moved closer to Eric, his eyes getting wild. "What if someone was going to hurt Lily or Serena. Then would you shoot whomever it was if it meant saving Lily or Serena's life?"

Eric subconsciously scooted backwards. "Um, if it was to protect someone I loved, or something like self defense, then yeah, I suppose I would have to."

"I think everyone has it in them to kill someone, don't you think?" Scott asked next. He scooted closer to Eric again.

Eric swallowed hard. He couldn't slide back any further. His butt was already hitting the armrest of the couch. He wasn't sure where this was going. All he knew was that he didn't like it. He didn't like it one bit!

~BA~

"I don't know. I think it's one of those things where you can't really tell until you're in that situation," I answered.

"Well, I think that no matter how innocent a person may seem, and no matter how good of a person one might be, they still have it in them to kill someone if the situation occurs. Maybe not for no reason like some people do, but to protect themselves or the ones they love, I full heartedly think we all have it in us to kill someone," Scott said. He then shrugged, and took another bite of his pizza. "Mm, this is so good."

I hoped that was the end of the conversation. It appeared to be. Even so, the damage had already been done. Scott obviously had shooting on his mind. I had to figure out what was going on with him before things got out of control.

"So, why the sudden interest in guns and shooting?" I asked casually.

Scott shrugged. "No reason." He took a long swig of his Pepsi before continuing. "It was just something the movie got me thinking about."

Something just wasn't setting right with me. However, I knew not to push Scott any further—especially with the mindset he was in. Hopefully the movie was the culprit, as he had said it was. Still, there was a nagging voice inside of my head that told me his sudden interest in guns and shooting people ran much deeper than watching a gangster movie. I made a mental note to keep an eye on him. And maybe sleep with one eye open while I'm at it.

~BA~

We finished eating our dinner, then gathered up our leftovers. I put the leftovers in the fridge, while Scott put our garbage in the trash.

"Well, I don't know where Mom and Dad are." Scott yawned and stretched. "I'm fully anyway. I think I'll just save my cake for tomorrow. I'm going to brush my teeth then head to bed a bit early. Maybe I'll read, or watch TV in bed before I doze off."

I nodded. "All right. I don't know where they are. I would think they'd have been back by now."

"Maybe they decided to see a movie after dinner," Scott suggested.

Eric nodded. "Maybe."

"Good night! Thanks again for dinner," Scott said as he headed up the stairs.

"Goodnight. You're welcome!" Eric said, watching his brother disappear up the stairs. He looked at his watch. It was after nine. He wondered if he should call them.

Before he had the chance to pull out his cell phone though, the elevator doors opened, and Rufus and Lily stepped into the apartment.

"Where were you guys? I thought you were just going for dinner!" Eric said.

Rufus and Lily looked at each other and blushed.

"We made a pitstop on the way home," Rufus announced.

Eric noticed how his mother's hair was a little messy, and Rufus' shirt buttons were buttoned wrong at the top. "Gross!"

Lily's face flushed an even brighter crimson. "We brought you some chocolate cake!" She smiled, apparently trying to change the subject, and held out the two small chocolate cake boxes, holding what Eric assumed was his and Scott's slices.

Eric took the boxes from her. "Thanks. I assume the hotel room had a fridge?" He hid a smile at the look of humiliation that suddenly crossed his mother's face. Sometimes he really enjoyed messing with her.

Rufus blushed again, and cleared his throat. "Yes, they did."

"I hope you don't mind, but Scott and I finished off your waffles for dinner tonight." Eric hid a smile as he headed over to the fridge to put Scott's slice of cake in it. He loved messing with Rufus as well.

"You did?" Rufus asked, sounding crushed. "Oh."

Eric took out the milk, then shut the fridge door, and turned around to look at Rufus, who was now standing in the living room looking crushed.

"At least Scott ate something," Rufus said sadly.

Eric poured himself a glass of milk, and grabbed a fork. He then sat down on one of the island stools, and grinned at Rufus. "I'm messing with you. We ordered a pizza, wings, and breadsticks in. If you're hungry for a late night snack, there's leftovers. We even saved you some blue cheese for the leftover wings. There's Pepsi in there as well. Your waffles are safe and sound, still in the fridge."

Rufus' expression quickly turned from one of distress to one of relief. "Thank God!" He then cleared his throat again. "I mean, I knew you were joshing me."

Eric smirked. "Sure you did." He dug into his cake then. "Mm, good."

"So, Scott came downstairs finally?" Lily asked, setting her purse on the island.

Eric nodded. He swallowed his cake and took a sip of his milk before explaining. "I had a little talk with him. He said he feels bad for the way he treated you guys tonight. He felt a little better after our talk, and asked to watch _The Godfather_. I agreed. So, I ordered the food, and we watched the movie. That's when things started to get weird."

Rufus raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

Eric then told them about everything from Scott's watching the movie intently and pretending to shoot along with the shooters to Scott's morbid questions about whether or not he had it in him to shoot someone. "He was really freaking me out! His eyes looked wild, and he said that he thinks everyone has it in them to kill if it means protecting the ones they love or themselves."

"That _is_ kind of odd. Maybe I should talk to him," Lily said.

Eric shook his head. "No, just leave it. He said the movie is what got him thinking. I don't know. I think we should just keep an eye on him from now on."

Rufus nodded as well. "We don't want to start anything with him. As far as we know, they were just innocent comments. A lot of guys like to think about shooting. It's just a macho thing."

Lily smirked. "The last thing you are is macho."

Rufus, not to be outdone, turned to her and smirked. "And the last thing you were tonight in the hotel was ladylike."

Lily's mouth dropped open, and she blushed.

Eric was glad he had already finished his cake. "All right! That's my cue to leave. Goodnight. And please, again, remember that my room is right below yours." He tossed out his empty cake box and napkin, then put his cup and fork in the dishwasher and quickly took off up the stairs before his parents could gross him out even more.

~Begin Again~

"I can't believe you said that in front of our son!" Lily scolded Rufus, giving him a gently slap on the arm.

Rufus laughed. "Payback for the comment about me not being macho!"

Lily glared at him. Then, her facial expression turned to one of worry. "I'm worried about Scott. Why was he asking so many questions about shooting?"

Rufus gently rubbed Lily's shoulders from behind. "Well, Eric said Scott said the movie had just gotten him thinking. I wouldn't worry about it too much. We'll just keep an eye on him like Eric suggested we do."

Lily sighed. "I guess that's all we _can_ do now."

Rufus nodded. "Exactly!" He then turned Lily around to face him, and he gently kissed her. "And Scott feels bad about what he said to us. See? I told you he'd come around." He kissed her again.

Lily kissed him back before responding, his face in her hands. "You always know the best ways to handle situations."

Rufus rested his forehead against hers. "And now that you know that, it's a good start to a lasting marriage."

Lily grinned, and kissed him. She took his hands in her own. "Let's go to bed."

Rufus nodded. He kissed the top of her forehead, then kissed her hands before releasing one of them, and leading her up to the bedroom.


End file.
